Protest at Sea against Deep Sea Mining Revisited: the MV Coco Case

In a previous publication in IJMCL , the author discussed a case of interference by environmental activists with the operations of a deep sea mining contractor in May 2021. While concluding that the actions could be considered unlawful, one of the most important findings was that adequate enforcement and effective remedies are mostly lacking. In November 2023, protest actions by Greenpeace from a Dutch-flagged vessel against deep sea mining activities resulted in media attention and a response by the International Seabed Authority ( ISA ), and led to a decision by an Amsterdam district court. This article examines the legal issues arising from both the ISA response and the Dutch court decision.