SeaBed Mining Off the Virginia Coast
- LWVSHR Comments On Seabed Mining, August 18, 2026
The League of Women Voters of South Hampton Roads is deeply concerned about potential offshore mineral exploration and extraction off the coast of Virginia. Our coastal waters and the seabed beneath form one contiguous habitat for local fisheries. The seabed influences how ocean waves approach the shore and our built infrastructure. Seabed mining may threaten our ports and shipping, our military installations and national security, coastal tourism which supports local business and government, and the aforementioned fisheries.Moreover, this proposed seabed mining method is essentially running a giant vacuum cleaner in the dark, destroying we know not what life forms with unknown potential benefit to humanity. The threats to existing coastal interests far outweigh possible future profits for the business that acquires a mining license.
The League of Women Voters believes that we should promote an environment beneficial to life through the protection and wise management of natural resources in the public interest. We believe that natural resources should be managed as interrelated parts of life-supporting ecosystems. We do not believe that seabed mining off Virginia’s coast is in the public interest.
Signed,
Christine Anderson and Josie Bergstrom, Co-Presidents
League of Women Voters South Hampton Roads
Mail: P.O. Box 1010
Norfolk, VA 23501