The U.S. Department of the Interior said Tuesday it began the process of selling deep-sea mining leases after launching a request for impossible metals (previously impossible mining).

The agency said the process would “evaluate potential mineral rental sales offshore Samoa in the United States.” Administrative procedures require public feedback in the Federal Gazette before any sales are considered.

Given the tone of the Interior Department’s secretary on the matter, the lease sale may be a foregone conclusion.

“The key minerals are the basis for strengthening the resilience of the nation and safeguarding our national interests,” said Home Secretary Doug Burgum. “By providing opportunities to responsibly obtain deep-sea mineral resources, we are supporting U.S. economic growth and national security.”

Impossible Metals filed a formal request for lease in April.

The company developed an underwater self-driving car that was lowered to the seabed by a crane, where it used robotic claws to capture mineral-rich polymeric metal nodules. Impossible Metal claims that its drones are less destructive to fragile deep-water ecosystems than their competitors, many of which use vacuum to attract nodules.

Over the course of millions of years, nodules of the polymer form, accumulating minerals dissolved in seawater, including manganese, iron, cobalt, nickel and copper. With the world's electricity, demand for this critical mineral soars. China's dominance over major mineral markets like Cobalt also leads companies and governments to seek alternative sources.

Clusters of metal attract prospectors’ eyes because they contain incredibly high minerals, much higher than land mines usually recover.

Ecologists and oceanographers warn that mining operations in areas rich in multilayer nodules damage fragile ecosystems. Life grows slowly in depth, and any interference will take decades to rebound. A recent study found that it would take 50 years for the microbial community to recover from its mining operations.

Mining robots can directly damage sponges and other organisms of sponges and other organisms, and those eliminated organisms still have to deal with sediment feathers that contaminate normally clear water. More importantly, the nodules themselves produce oxygen, which suggests that they can help researchers find life on other planets.