The Battleground Below

In New Zealand, surfers are fighting against a seabed-mining proposal that could not only affect their local waters, but set a precedent for a new kind of oceanic exploitation around the world

- Todd Prodanovich

The courtroom felt comically small, like a halogen-lit shoebox, even before people started cramming in. Tucked away on the basement floor of the Wellington High Court, the nondescript space seemed unceremonious, like where you’d go to protest a traffic ticket—not a venue for legal proceedings that could decide the fate of nearly 2,000 square miles of marine habitat. Yet one by one, a small regiment of black-robed lawyers filed into the room to speak for or against a highly-controversial seabed mining proposal. Behind them were dozens of spectators clamoring for the handful of seats in the cramped gallery, with spillovers grabbing chairs from the hall outside and blocking the walkway. The judge frowned at this chaos from the bench and signaled the court officer to clear a path, and, while he was at it, to kick out the riff raff cluttering up the hearing.

“Mate, that’s not exactly courtroom attire,” said the officer, shaking his head and pointing to my denim jacket. “Come with me.”

He escorted me out of the courtroom and into a hallway, where he said I could listen to the proceedings through a pair of tinny speakers if I kept quiet and didn’t bother anyone. “Next time, remember your suit and tie,” he quipped.