About Marine Minerals
Marine Minerals explains one connected subject: the tin Cornwall mined, the tin that lies in sand on the sea floor, the international and UK rules that decide who may take minerals from the seabed, and what tin is used for. It is written for readers who want the mechanism and the source, not a campaign.
The site publishes explainers only: it does not mine, dredge, survey or consult for anyone, and it sells nothing.
What it covers
- Cornish tin: How Cornwall became a tin country: its mines, engine houses, stream works and stannary law, and what is left of them today.
- Tin from the sea: Where tin on the sea floor comes from, what cassiterite and placer deposits are, how seabed sand is dredged and surveyed, and where in the world offshore tin is mined.
- Deep-sea mining: What deep-sea mining is, the minerals involved, how the International Seabed Authority and UNCLOS govern the international seabed, and where the mining code stands.
- UK marine licensing: How UK marine licensing works: the MMO and the devolved regulators, the Crown Estate as seabed landowner, the Marine and Coastal Access Act, fees, impact assessments and protected sites.
- What tin is for: What tin is used for, from electronics solder and tinplate cans to bronze and pewter, with facts on world production, price, recycling and supply risk.
Who writes it
Guides are researched, written and checked by the Marine Minerals editors, a small editorial desk. The byline is the desk, not one person, because every page is built the same way and checked by a second pass before it is published: the editors collect source pages first, copy the passage behind each fact into a research file, write only what the file supports, and then run automated checks that fail the page if a number, date or legal statement is missing from its sources. The desk does not mine, dredge, survey or advise anyone.
Questions about a page, a correction or a newer figure go to editors@marine-minerals.com. The editors aim to reply within five working days.
Where it stands on deep-sea mining
Neutral. Governments, scientists, companies and campaigners disagree about whether seabed mining should happen. The guides report what the International Seabed Authority, the United Nations, national regulators and the scientific literature say, name each position as its holder's, and include the documented risks alongside the stated benefits.
How a page is built and kept current
- Sources first. Licences, fees, treaties and statutes come from government or treaty-body pages only. Science and history come from universities, museums, heritage bodies and mine operators where they exist. Reference works are used for background and never for a legal rule.
- Dates on every page. Each guide shows when it was published, when it was last updated and how many sources it was checked against, split by type. Each source in the list shows the day it was read.
- Re-checks. Fast-moving pages (deep-sea mining rules, licence fees, South Crofty) are re-read whenever the regulator or company publishes, and every guide at least every three months.
- Corrections. Errors are fixed, dated and logged on the corrections page; substantive updates appear on what changed.
Read the full editorial policy, or contact the editors.