Sharon Brett-Kelley

Why do you think there's such strong opposition to it from some people?

You know, when you talk about it, it sounds like a great solution.

That's it for today.

The detail is the Newsroom production supported by RNZ and New Zealand On Air.

Today's podcast was produced by Alexia Russell and engineered by William Saunders.

Thanks to Greg Smith and Janae Tibshraine.

I'm Sharon Brett-Kelley.

Mā te wā.

There's hydrogen and helium and lithium, beryllium... It's a good way to remember your elements for a pub quiz, but maybe it's time for Kiwi kids to have a new ditty from the periodic table of New Zealand's own list of 37 critical minerals, given the song and dance being made of them and the latest revelations.

I'm Sharon Brett-Kelley.

Today on The Detail, the secretive talks around a US-New Zealand critical minerals deal and the journalist who was told to destroy sensitive information.

First, why the big global fuss over critical minerals?

Well, here's my newsroom colleague, geologist turned political reporter, Fox Meyer.

Where do we find all these critical minerals?

Say if you dug up a piece of ground somewhere in Taranaki, is that what you would find?

Some vanadium?

I came across something called the clarion clipperton zone and polymetallic nodules.

And I suppose why the Cook Islands is caught up in the middle of all this excitement over critical minerals.

Can you explain all that, Fox?

And that's the seabed mining we're talking about, these little nodules.