Guam Under Siege: US Military Build-Up and Deep-Sea Mining Threaten to Wreck the Island’s Ecosystem

Guam Under Siege: US Military Build-Up and Deep-Sea Mining Threaten to Wreck the Island’s Ecosystem

A new study warns that the United States military expansion on Guam, combined with plans for deep-sea mining in the surrounding Pacific Ocean, is pushing the island’s fragile environment toward irreversible damage.

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A study published in the July 2026 edition of the journal *Science* highlights two major threats facing Guam’s ecosystems. The report details that the U.S. military’s ongoing buildup on the island, along with proposals to extract minerals from the ocean floor, could severely disturb fragile marine habitats [193139]. Deep-sea mining involves scraping the seabed for minerals, a process that destroys the slow-growing communities of organisms living there. The researchers urge policymakers to conduct careful environmental assessments before allowing either activity to move forward [193139]. The study appears in the journal’s 393rd volume and emphasizes the need to balance security and economic interests with environmental protection [193139]. Meanwhile, a separate study in the same issue of *Science* warns that a major international effort to curb plastic pollution—the Global Plastics Treaty—is at risk of failure due to a critical lack of reliable data [193150]. Researchers argue that without standardized information on plastic production, disposal, and breakdown, countries cannot monitor their own progress or hold others accountable, making the treaty unenforceable [193150]. They call for a global system to collect and share this data as a political necessity for the treaty’s success [193150].

Sources

US military and deep-sea mining threaten Guam's environment #193139Global Plastics Treaty faces failure without data. Scientists warn. #193150

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