Why US Reliance on Foreign Minerals is Risky

September 3, 2020 11:19:25

The misconception behind not mining the crude minerals in the U.S. is causing the country to be reliant on foreign minerals, and should be eliminated immediately. America’s best step is to come up with practical and well-laid strategies that will govern the mining of those minerals. By doing this, the U.S. will not depend on other nations for the minerals required to manufacture consumer goods and sophisticated weapons.

Why America is adamant in not mining its minerals

Some members of Congress and environmentalists are the biggest obstacles to the U.S. mining its minerals. This is hard to comprehend as they should be the ones leading from the front in the campaign to extract those minerals locally. Some of the major minerals that the U.S. is importing are copper, which is used to manufacture various items, such as wind turbines, electric car batteries, and solar panels.

Due to the increased use of renewable energy and electric vehicles, a bigger supply of lithium, copper, and other minerals will be required. These minerals could be mined easily and create much needed profit only if the U.S. considers changing its mining policies. Additionally, other useful minerals such as nickel, aluminum, cobalt, and manganese cannot be exploited by the mining companies like Kingman Minerals Ltd. (TSX.V: KGS) due to these restrictive policies.

18 of the minerals that America uses are 100% imported, and 14 of them have been marked to be very crucial by the defense department. Those minerals have numerous uses in the American economy, especially the energy sector. Therefore, it is detrimental to rely on foreign minerals as these may be dangerous in the coming days. Due to the U.S.’s stringent mining restrictions, mining firms have to wait for at least ten years to be granted mining permissions. For the U.S. to effectively start mining its minerals, these harsh measures must be reviewed again.

Amending the mining rules

The American mining systems were set in a very different period when the U.S. was the leading producer and the user of those minerals. Long gone are those days as China is now the dominant nation in producing and exporting those crucial minerals required by the U.S. Some defense members are claiming that the dependence on foreign minerals will put America in a vulnerable position. Furthermore, the overdependence on imported minerals limits the country’s potentiality to take advantage of its minerals.

Besides, the energy producers and manufacturers in the U.S. are the most vulnerable groups as the cost of importing the minerals is double what it would be if they were sourced locally. It could be cheaper if they were to do their mining in the way China is doing. The policy gives U.S. manufacturers a hard time, and that’s why most US-based companies are shifting to China.

It is high time environmentalists and Congress amended the mining rules to ensure that the home-based miners can access domestic minerals. From these local minerals, the U.S. can establish its infrastructure, advance its energy production, and improve their manufacturing technologies. By overhauling those mining rules, the U.S. will also boost its position in the world’s mining sector.

Mining independence in the US should be considered a grave subject of discussion. The US economy should be strengthened from domestic mining than spending a lot of cash in importing its minerals. If these rules can be amended, the US national security, energy independence, and global competition will tremendously benefit from local mining proceeds.

About MiningNewsWire

MiningNewsWire (MNW) is a specialized communications platform focused on developments and opportunities in the global resources sector. The company provides (1) access to a network of wire services via NetworkWire to reach all target markets, industries and demographics in the most effective manner possible, (2) article and editorial syndication to 5,000+ news outlets (3), enhanced press release services to ensure maximum impact, (4) social media distribution via the Investor Brand Network (IBN) to nearly 2 million followers, and (5) a full array of corporate communications solutions. As a multifaceted organization with an extensive team of contributing journalists and writers, MNW is uniquely positioned to best serve private and public companies that desire to reach a wide audience of investors, consumers, journalists and the general public. By cutting through the overload of information in today’s market, MNW brings its clients unparalleled visibility, recognition and brand awareness. MNW is where news, content and information converge.

To receive SMS text alerts from MiningNewsWire, text “BigHole” to 21000 (U.S. Mobile Phones Only)

For more information, please visit https://www.MiningNewsWire.com

Please see full terms of use and disclaimers on the MiningNewsWire website applicable to all content provided by MNW, wherever published or re-published: https://www.MiningNewsWire.com/Disclaimer

MiningNewsWire
Los Angeles, California
www.MiningNewsWire.com
310.299.1717 Office
[email protected]

MiningNewsWire is part of the InvestorBrandNetwork.