CONTENTS 



Page 



Exclusive Economic Zone: The Nation's New Frontier 3 



Mineral Resources of the EEZ in Perspective 8 



Mineral Occurrences in the U.S. EEZ 10 



Minerals Supply, Demand, and Future Trends 13 



Outlook for Development of Selected Offshore Minerals 15 



Titanium 15 



Chromite 15 



Phosphorite 16 



Gold 16 



Sand and Gravel 16 



Deep-Sea Minerals 16 



Technologies for Exploring the Seabed 17 



Technologies for Mining and Processing Marine Minerals 19 



Environmental Considerations 20 



Collecting and Managing Oceanographic Data 21 



Summary and Findings 23 



Issues and Options 25 



Focusing the National Exploration Effort 25 



Providing for Future Seabed Mining 28 



Improving the Use of the Nation's EEZ Data and Information 32 



Providing for the Use of Classified Data 33 



Assisting the States in Preparing for Future Seabed Mining 34 



Boxes 



Box Page 



1-A. The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea 5 



1-B. A Source of Confusion: Geologic Continental Sheli; Jurisdictional 



Continental Shelf; Exclusive Economic Zone 7 



1-C. Prelease Prospecting for Marine Mining Minerals in the EEZ: Minerals 



Management Service Proposed Rules 31 



Figures 



Figure No. Page 



1-1. The Ocean Zones, Including the Exclusive Economic Zone 4 



1-2. U.S. Mineral Imports 9 



1-3. Potential Hard Mineral Resource in the EEZ of the Continental United 



States, Alaska, and Hawaii 11 



