On Critical Minerals: How to Get America Mining Again

This article was written by BENS Board Directors David C. McDonald and Anthony Weiss,
published in The National Interest. All rights reserved.

“America’s loss of dominance in mining to China was not inevitable—nor is its renewal.”

President Trump’s recent executive order, Immediate Measures to Increase American Mineral Production, seeks to reverse the decline of U.S. production and processing of critical minerals and the resulting reliance on foreign adversaries. According to the U.S. Geological Survey, America is 100 percent dependent on imports for twelve of the fifty minerals considered “critical,” and over 50 percent reliant on imports for twenty-eight more. China is the top producer of thirty critical minerals and a quarter of the U.S. imports.

Reliance on adversaries for key inputs impacting U.S. manufacturing and defense capabilities is an unacceptable vulnerability. Securing American supply chains for critical minerals will require significant government investment, updates to existing funding mechanisms, regulatory changes, and partnerships with countries and companies that possess the desired resources and expertise.

How did the globalization of the mineral supply chain become a national emergency, and what should the United States do about it?