LISBON (Reuters) - Concerned about the potential impacts of deep-sea mining on ocean biodiversity, the Pacific islands of Palau and Fiji on Monday launched an "alliance" to call for a moratorium of the nascent industry.

The backing of a moratorium comes amid a wave of global interest in deep-sea mining but also growing pressure from some environmental groups and governments to either ban it or ensure it only goes ahead if appropriate regulations are in place.

Deep-sea mining uses heavy machinery to suck up off the ocean floor potato-sized rocks or nodules that contain cobalt, manganese, and other rare metals mostly used in batteries.