Mining the moon might sound like a concept that belongs in a science fiction novel, but it’s likely to be a part of reality in the not-so-distant future. That’s made it a hot topic of discussion among space lawyers — yes, there are space lawyers — on Earth.
When Michelle Hanlon, co-director of the Air and Space Law Program at the University of Mississippi, tells people what she does for a living, she says most people are confused.
“Most people think I’m a real estate lawyer — what kind of space do you sell?” she said, laughing. But in fact, Hanlon is an expert in the law governing outer space.
There are several international agreements governing space, including The Outer Space Treaty, which was drafted during the Cold War and signed by more than 100 countries including the United States, China and Russia.
That treaty, which states “outer space, including the moon and other celestial bodies, is not subject to national appropriation by claim of sovereignty,” is what prevents countries from swooping in and declaring ownership over the moon.
An artistic rendering of the planned International Lunar Research Station, a collaboration in development by China and Russia. (China National Space Administration)
“You cannot plant a flag anywhere in space and say this now belongs to the United States, this now belongs to Russia, this now belongs to China,” Hanlon said.
But when it comes to mining the moon for resources, things get more complicated. Legal experts are working on teasing out exactly how that treaty applies when nations — or private companies working on behalf of nations — start harvesting resources from the moon or asteroids.
“By building a mining operation, some would argue … you’re actually claiming sovereignty by another means,” Hanlon said. “We have to learn to do something in space that we haven’t yet learned how to do on Earth. And that is: be mindful and respectful of each other.”
That will be put to the test in the next few years, as major space-faring nations race to establish bases on the moon.
NASA’s Artemis mission, which the Canadian Space Agency is contributing to, hopes to send humans to the moon by 2030.
This time around, the plan is not just to visit but to stay for good. That includes building a base camp at the lunar south pole, as well as a lunar gateway — a spaceship that would orbit the moon.
China and Russia have their own lunar base in development, a collaboration between the two countries called the International Lunar Research Station.
In order to avoid hauling resources from Earth to sustain those habitats, space programs are hoping to harvest resources from the moon’s icy surface. That’s includes water — essential for human life and a source for fuel when broken down into hydrogen and oxygen — as well as rare earth minerals and helium-3, a potential source of energy.
“The moon is pretty large and the moon itself isn’t going to get crowded, but the areas where we know there is water are going to get crowded,” Hanlon said.
Not the Wild West
Given the track record of mining on Earth, including the human toll and environmental damages, there are concerns the same mistakes will be repeated when humans become a truly space-faring species.
“I do worry at times,” said Kuan-Wei Chen, a legal expert in space law and the executive director of McGill University’s Centre for Research in Air and Space Law.
“We don’t want to have again the repeat of history, when countries and commercial operators go to what they call a ‘new world’ to start fighting and engaging in conflict over resources.”
That’s why, he says, its up to academics and governments to emphasize that there are laws governing space.
“Space is not a legal vacuum. It’s not the Wild West. It should not be the Wild West.”
NASA’s Artemis 1 rocket sits in place at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida. A second launch attempt for the uncrewed spacecraft is planned for Saturday. (John Raoux/The Associated Press)
To help guide countries through those existing frameworks, Chen worked with a team at McGill University as well as a coalition of international experts to produce a manual on international law in outer space.
But the outer space treaty is open to interpretation when it comes to mining.
“The law says very clearly it’s not allowed to appropriate the moon. Now, does that mean you’re not allowed to extract and use your resources that are found in the soil or the subsoil of the moon? That’s not clear,” Chen said.
Generally agreed: If you mine it, you own it
NASA introduced the Artemis Accords in 2020, as what it describes as establishing “a safe and transparent environment which facilitates exploration, science, and commercial activities for all of humanity to enjoy.”
In a statement sent to CBC, a spokesperson said that “extraction of space resources does not inherently constitute national appropriation.”
But Russia and China have not signed the U.S.-led accords, and experts say they are unlikely to do so.
“Russia and China believe very strongly that the only place you can make space law is within the United Nations and they see the Artemis Accords as trying to circumvent that,” Hanlon said.
“I think the US would say we’re not circumventing, we’re just jump starting.”
Regardless, Hanlon said the Artemis Accords’ interpretation of the Outer Space Treaty as it applies to mining are in line with what has been generally accepted. She says that takeway — which China and Russia have never disagreed with — can be summed up as “if you mine it, you own it.”
Michelle Hanlon, co-director of the Air and Space Law Program at the University of Mississippi, said if humans can come up with a plan to sustiainably manage resources in space, it will benefit all of humankind. (Submitted by Michelle Hanlon)
As nations inch closer to establishing a presence on the moon and beyond, Hanlon and Chen agree there needs to be more awareness about how international law applies.
The hope is that nations will respect the current treaties and find a way to harvest resources equitably and sustainably.
If they don’t, or if conflict arises, the international community will have to rely on diplomatic pressures — or there is the potential to turn to the International Court of Justice.
“We need to make sure that whatever we do in outer space and also on the moon will not have a detrimental impact on on us right now, but also the future generation,” Chen said.
“These international laws … were drafted with those guiding principles of ensuring that space is a peaceful domain, and ensuring that there is a sustainable future for the future of humankind in outer space, on the moon and on other planets.”
Kuan-Wei Chen, executive director of McGill University’s Centre for Research in Air and Space Law said that while he does worry about how mining in space will play out, he has faith in the law. (Submitted by Kuan-Wei Chen)
NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — The body of Ugandan Olympic athlete Rebecca Cheptegei — who died after being set on fire by her partner in Kenya — was received Friday by family and anti-femicide crusaders, ahead of her burial a day later.
Cheptegei’s family met with dozens of activists Friday who had marched to the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital’s morgue in the western city of Eldoret while chanting anti-femicide slogans.
She is the fourth female athlete to have been killed by her partner in Kenya in yet another case of gender-based violence in recent years.
Viola Cheptoo, the founder of Tirop Angels – an organization that was formed in honor of athlete Agnes Tirop, who was stabbed to death in 2021, said stakeholders need to ensure this is the last death of an athlete due to gender-based violence.
“We are here to say that enough is enough, we are tired of burying our sisters due to GBV,” she said.
It was a somber mood at the morgue as athletes and family members viewed Cheptegei’s body which sustained 80% of burns after she was doused with gasoline by her partner Dickson Ndiema. Ndiema sustained 30% burns on his body and later succumbed.
Ndiema and Cheptegei were said to have quarreled over a piece of land that the athlete bought in Kenya, according to a report filed by the local chief.
Cheptegei competed in the women’s marathon at the Paris Olympics less than a month before the attack. She finished in 44th place.
Cheptegei’s father, Joseph, said that the body will make a brief stop at their home in the Endebess area before proceeding to Bukwo in eastern Uganda for a night vigil and burial on Saturday.
“We are in the final part of giving my daughter the last respect,” a visibly distraught Joseph said.
He told reporters last week that Ndiema was stalking and threatening Cheptegei and the family had informed police.
Four in 10 women or an estimated 41% of dating or married Kenyan women have experienced physical or sexual violence perpetrated by their current or most recent partner, according to the Kenya Demographic and Health Survey 2022.
TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — A rare Bronze-Era jar accidentally smashed by a 4-year-old visiting a museum was back on display Wednesday after restoration experts were able to carefully piece the artifact back together.
Last month, a family from northern Israel was visiting the museum when their youngest son tipped over the jar, which smashed into pieces.
Alex Geller, the boy’s father, said his son — the youngest of three — is exceptionally curious, and that the moment he heard the crash, “please let that not be my child” was the first thought that raced through his head.
The jar has been on display at the Hecht Museum in Haifa for 35 years. It was one of the only containers of its size and from that period still complete when it was discovered.
The Bronze Age jar is one of many artifacts exhibited out in the open, part of the Hecht Museum’s vision of letting visitors explore history without glass barriers, said Inbal Rivlin, the director of the museum, which is associated with Haifa University in northern Israel.
It was likely used to hold wine or oil, and dates back to between 2200 and 1500 B.C.
Rivlin and the museum decided to turn the moment, which captured international attention, into a teaching moment, inviting the Geller family back for a special visit and hands-on activity to illustrate the restoration process.
Rivlin added that the incident provided a welcome distraction from the ongoing war in Gaza. “Well, he’s just a kid. So I think that somehow it touches the heart of the people in Israel and around the world,“ said Rivlin.
Roee Shafir, a restoration expert at the museum, said the repairs would be fairly simple, as the pieces were from a single, complete jar. Archaeologists often face the more daunting task of sifting through piles of shards from multiple objects and trying to piece them together.
Experts used 3D technology, hi-resolution videos, and special glue to painstakingly reconstruct the large jar.
Less than two weeks after it broke, the jar went back on display at the museum. The gluing process left small hairline cracks, and a few pieces are missing, but the jar’s impressive size remains.
The only noticeable difference in the exhibit was a new sign reading “please don’t touch.”
VICTORIA – The British Columbia government is partnering with a bear welfare group to reduce the number of bears being euthanized in the province.
Nicholas Scapillati, executive director of Grizzly Bear Foundation, said Monday that it comes after months-long discussions with the province on how to protect bears, with the goal to give the animals a “better and second chance at life in the wild.”
Scapillati said what’s exciting about the project is that the government is open to working with outside experts and the public.
“So, they’ll be working through Indigenous knowledge and scientific understanding, bringing in the latest techniques and training expertise from leading experts,” he said in an interview.
B.C. government data show conservation officers destroyed 603 black bears and 23 grizzly bears in 2023, while 154 black bears were killed by officers in the first six months of this year.
Scapillati said the group will publish a report with recommendations by next spring, while an independent oversight committee will be set up to review all bear encounters with conservation officers to provide advice to the government.
Environment Minister George Heyman said in a statement that they are looking for new ways to ensure conservation officers “have the trust of the communities they serve,” and the panel will make recommendations to enhance officer training and improve policies.
Lesley Fox, with the wildlife protection group The Fur-Bearers, said they’ve been calling for such a committee for decades.
“This move demonstrates the government is listening,” said Fox. “I suspect, because of the impending election, their listening skills are potentially a little sharper than they normally are.”
Fox said the partnership came from “a place of long frustration” as provincial conservation officers kill more than 500 black bears every year on average, and the public is “no longer tolerating this kind of approach.”
“I think that the conservation officer service and the B.C. government are aware they need to change, and certainly the public has been asking for it,” said Fox.
Fox said there’s a lot of optimism about the new partnership, but, as with any government, there will likely be a lot of red tape to get through.
“I think speed is going to be important, whether or not the committee has the ability to make change and make change relatively quickly without having to study an issue to death, ” said Fox.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 9, 2024.
