Conflicts over natural resources are inseparable from human history. As technology has advanced, however, competition over certain resources has only grown. Over the past few decades, there has been an ever-increasing need for critical minerals, which are essential for national security as they are crucial for everything from renewable energy to weapons systems. One such source is polymetallic nodules (“nodules”), found on the seabed floor of the Clarion-Clipperton Zone (“CCZ”) in international waters. Competition over who gets the right to extract this resource has intensified in recent years, and while there have been international efforts to create a workable framework, actions taken by countries such as the United States have complicated that process.

Two percent of earthquakes are linked to hydraulic fracturing operations; these manmade “quakes” have been devastating to homeowners across the country since they induce unsafe conditions and expensive property damage. Fracking is the process of using pressurized water with chemicals to create fractures in underground rock layers to extract oil and gas. Fracking fluid is a combination of water and chemicals used to perform the fracturing, once finished this fracking fluid has to be disposed of and is often injected deep into the earth, which is known to induce “quakes.”

The discovery of dinosaur fossils presents a core property law issue involving ownership. In 1990, Sue Hendrickson excavated Sue the T-Rex, one of the largest, most complete Tyrannosaurus rex fossils on a ranch owned by Maurice Williams. Hendrickson was working with the Black Hills Institute of Geological Research (BHI), a private commercial fossil collector, and gained William’s permission to excavate. In 1992, the FBI seized Sue the T-Rex, claiming the fossil belonged to the government because it was found on land held in government trust. What followed was a legal battle over who owned Sue the T-Rex. The courts found that Williams was the rightful owner based on his possessory interest in the land. However, because the land was held in trust by the government, Williams’ ownership functioned like a possessory interest while the government maintained legal title over Sue the T-Rex. Williams would later require government permission to sell Sue for $8.4 million.

Western Apache Natives know the land at Oak Flat, also known as Chi’chil Biłdagoteel, in Phoenix, Arizona as part of their home. The natives have used the land for centuries to conduct ceremonies, which are part of their religious and tribal belief that are tied specifically to Oak Flat. The problem that comes from Oak Flat is that the land is situated on top of a massive deposit of copper, around 20 million tons of it valued at around $200 billion. In 1955, President Eisenhower closed off all mining operations on Oak Flat, which was later reaffirmed in 1971, and since then, the area has been used by the tribe and other ancestors with the guarantee that their rights to the land would not be intruded upon.

A Canadian company, The Metals Company (TMC), recently applied for U.S. government approval to mine the deep seabed. Specifically, parts of the Pacific Ocean outside any country’s borders. Instead of going through the usual international process run by the United Nations International Seabed Authority, TMC is asking for a license under U.S. law called the Deep Seabed Hard Mineral Resources Act (DSHMRA), which allows U.S. companies to explore the ocean floors.