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Minerals play an invaluable role in enhancing our quality of life, powering the economy and strengthening the national security of the United States. Yet, while America is home to a wealth of mineral resources, our ability to secure these critical materials in the face of rising global competition is threatened by an outdated permitting process and regulations that delay critical investments for years—and in some cases, up to a decade.

Every year, the average American uses hundreds of newly mined minerals. Behind every cell phone call and email typed on a laptop are minerals that make it all possible. Minerals not only improve the quality of our lives, they also form the bedrock of the U.S. economy by providing the materials needed to keep our economy moving. Minerals enable us to manufacture automobiles, to construct new office buildings, and to bring to market the lifesaving medical devices and innovative nanotechnologies that will keep our citizens healthy and our economy competitive in the future. Minerals also play a central role in ensuring our nation’s security by forming the components of technologies such as missile guidance systems.

The United States has reserves of more commodity minerals and metals (78) than any other country. The estimated value of select mineral resources is $6.2 trillion. Today, the United States is considered a major mineral producing country and is a net exporter of several mineral commodities, predominantly gold. Additionally, we produce large quantities of iron ore, copper, phosphate rock and zinc.

Technological advancements, improved safety procedures and rigorous oversight have helped make mining safer than ever for the environment and for those in the industry. Over the last three decades, more than 2.6 million acres of mined lands have been restored through reclamation for other uses such as sanctuaries for wildlife, range land for cattle, housing and commercial development—even research facilities.

Yet, despite these advances and our vast reserves, the United States’ share of global investment in metals mining has dramatically declined over the last 20 years—falling from 21 percent in 1993 to 8 percent today. Why? One reason is that it takes anywhere from five to 10 years to go through the permitting process. According to a recent independent report, the United States was ranked dead last among a list of 25 countries judged on delays in the permitting process.

As a consequence, we have become increasingly dependent on imports—even for minerals we could produce at home. The United States now imports $5.1 billion worth of mineral materials and is 100 percent dependent on imports for 18 different minerals. This situation subjects our supply chain to multiple potential disruptions, ranging from political instability to market-induced export quotas.

In the following pages, we invite you to read more about what minerals mean to America, the challenges facing our supply chain, and solutions to ensuring that we have access for the long-term to the minerals we need for economic prosperity and national security. Please visit www.mineralsmakelife.org for more information.

U.S. Share of Global Investment in Sharp Decline

2010

8%

21%

1993

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A Single 3MW Wind Turbine Needs:

335 tons of steel

4.7 tons of copper

1,200 tons of reinforced concrete

3 tons of aluminum

700-plus pounds of rare earth minerals

Zinc

Molybdenum

Source: Vestas Wind Systems

Minerals are the building blocks for our future. They hold the keys to developing the technologies that will propel our economy, enable America to compete globally and improve the quality of our lives.

The technologies that define innovation today all depend on minerals—lifesaving medical devices, smart phones and advanced energy technologies alike require minerals to function. Beyond using large quantities of minerals, many of today’s emerging technologies also rely on combinations of a variety of different minerals working together. For example, in the 1980s, computer chips were made with a palette of 12 minerals. A decade later, 16 elements were used. Today, as many as 60 different minerals (or their constituent elements) are used in fabricating the high-speed, high-capacity integrated circuits that are crucial to this technology. As the world’s population grows, as developing countries embrace new technologies and erect new infrastructure, and as products relying on even greater combinations of minerals come to the market, demand for minerals will grow. In fact, over the next five years, worldwide demand for select, frequently-used metals and minerals is anticipated to match or outpace global GDP growth (roughly 4 percent) for key com-modities. Demand for copper will match GDP growth; at 5.6 percent and 7.6 percent, respectively, demand for molybdenum and iron ore will outpace GDP; and demand for aluminum will grow twice as fast as GDP. Auto executives estimate that the demand for lithium for hybrid car batteries could outpace supply in as soon as 10 years.

With such demand projected, the United States’ ability to continue to innovate will depend on proper planning today to meet tomorrow’s needs.

Minerals in a CAT Scan Include:

Tungsten

Copper

Lead

Silver

Chlorine

Aluminum

Gold

Europium

Terbium

Cerium

Source: Christensen’s Physics of Diagnostic Radiology

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A job in U.S. minerals mining is one of the highest-paying jobs of any industrial category, with the average salary registering more than $70,000 a year, and oftentimes climbing above $100,000 for experienced workers. Prospects for those entering the field today are bright; not only have technological and training advances helped to make mining continually safer for workers, but mining is one of the few industries that is beginning to add more jobs—at the rate of nearly 1,800 new jobs each month since the beginning of 2010, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Moreover, as older workers retire over the next five to 10 years, an estimated 55,000 new workers (including coal miners) will be needed.

Mining’s impact on local economies extends far beyond the direct jobs created and state and local taxes that are paid. It is estimated that every job in metal mining generates 2.3 additional jobs elsewhere in the economy, and every nonmetals mining job generates 1.6 additional jobs. All told, more than 1.1 million American jobs are supported through minerals mining; more than 400,000 directly and roughly 700,000 indirectly. Perhaps even more fundamental to the economy than the jobs created are the necessary raw materials that mines supply to various sectors. Minerals are the building blocks for the manufacturing, construction and automotive industries and are essential to growth in burgeoning fields such as health care and technology. By transforming minerals into the infrastructure and products we use, these industries add nearly $2 trillion to the U.S. economy each year.

To illustrate, in 2010, U.S. mines produced mineral raw materials worth $64 billion. These domestic raw materials—plus domestically recycled materials—were used to process mineral materials such as aluminum, copper and steel worth $578 billion. The mineral materials were then utilized by construction, manufacturing and other industries, ultimately adding more than $2 trillion to the U.S. economy in 2010—roughly 14 percent of GDP.

Despite the fact that the United States has grown increasingly dependent on mineral imports, U.S. mines play an important role in supplying many of the minerals needed by U.S. industries. Manufacturers depend on American mines for approximately half the minerals they use. But we can do more to meet our domestic needs for minerals.

By creating jobs and providing essential materials, mining is emerging as an important partner in stimulating economic recovery. The mining of just eight minerals (i.e., zinc, lead, potash, silver, molybdenum, gold, copper and iron ore) is worth $6 billion. In addition, we have plentiful resources of lithium, bauxite, cobalt and sulfur. This role, however, pales in comparison to its potential for the future.

The Role of Nonfuel Minerals in the U.S. Economy (Estimated Values in 2010)

U.S. ECONOMY Gross Domestic Product:

$14.6 trillion

VALUE ADDED TO GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT BY MAJOR INDUSTRIES THAT CONSUME PROCESSED MINERAL MATERIALS1

Value: $2.1 trillion

MINERAL MATERIALS PROCESSED DOMESTICALLY

Aluminum, Brick, Cement, Copper, Fertilizers, Steel, etc.

Value of shipments: $578 billion

NET IMPORTS OF PROCESSED MINERAL MATERIALS

Metals, Chemicals, etc.

Imports: $115 billion Exports: $87 billion Net imports: $28 billion

DOMESTIC MINERAL RAW MATERIALS FROM MINING

Copper ore, Iron ore, Sand and Gravel, Stone, etc.

Value: $64 billion

METALS AND MINERAL PRODUCTS RECYCLED DOMESTICALLY

Aluminum, Glass, Steel, etc.

Value of old scrap: $15.2 billion

NET EXPORTS OF MINERAL RAW MATERIALS

Gold, Soda, Ash, Zinc concentrates, etc.

Imports: $5.1 billion Exports: $7.5 billion Net exports: $2.4 billion

NET EXPORTS OF OLD SCRAP

Gold, Steel, etc.

Imports: $5.1 billion Exports: $19 billion Net exports: $13.9 billion

Sources: U.S. Geological Survey and U.S. Department of Commerce 1Major consuming industries of processed mineral materials are construction, durable goods manufacturers and some nondurable goods manufacturers. The value of shipments for processed minerals cannot be directly related to gross domestic product.

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Access to minerals means a more secure America, as minerals are among the most important components in the technologies protecting our nation. The U.S. Department of Defense uses nearly three-quarters of a million tons of minerals every year.

Minerals are integral to a range of military functions—from the obvious to the unseen. Aluminum is a key structural component in aircrafts due to its unique strength-to-weight ratio and its anti-corrosive properties. The magnetic capabilities of rare earth minerals—and their ability to resist demagnetization at high temperatures—are what lend missiles their necessary precision. Rare earth minerals are also found in lasers, radar systems, night vision equipment and satellites—in addition to commercial applications such as cell phones and computer hard drives.

Having steady access to these critical minerals is paramount to the integrity of our nation’s security. However, in the 70 years since the United States first began stockpiling minerals for national defense, the picture of supply and demand for these minerals has changed markedly—leading to questions about where these minerals will come from in the future. In the past, the United States has been able to readily access minerals due to abundant global supplies, but that is changing as top-producing countries need more minerals for their own growing markets. Additionally, dramatic industrial growth in China, India, Russia and Brazil has led to greater demand for minerals. At the same time, minerals production in the United States has remained relatively flat for more than 20 years. Moving forward, we need to ensure we create policies and an overall environment that enable the United States to be more self-reliant.

With waning domestic production and a reliance on an ever-widening range of minerals, today the United States is heavily reliant on imports for many of the minerals used by our military. This reliance, coupled with flat production at home, places the United States at greater risk of facing supply disruptions. In addition to increased demand, political instability, natural disasters, military conflicts, terrorist attacks and even market manipulation are among the many factors that could limit our access to imported minerals. Already, the Department of Defense has experienced periodic supply availability issues in the global marketplace—for instance, when demand surged for titanium sponge/metal as a result of wartime production efforts.

With increased demands on mineral resources, ensuring our military has adequate access to minerals will become more challenging in the future. It will also become more important, as the demands on our military change. To respond on a moment’s notice to threats from anywhere in the globe, we will need a reliable supply chain to meet our mineral defense needs.

Standard MaterialRegular DoD Demand in STONS/yr

Rank-Order for DoD/yr (STONS)

Aluminum Metal 275,219.8 1

Aluminum Oxide Fused Crude 6,002.8

Antimony 4,693.8

Bauxite Refractory 7,700.5

Bismuth 171.5

Cadmium 75.0

Chromite Ore (all grades) 9,630.5 10

Chromium Ferro (Ferrochromium) 9,667.8 9

Chromium Metal 913.8

Cobalt 4,242.8

Columbium 484.8

Copper 105,625.8 2

Fluorspar Acid Grade 56,544.5 4

Fluorspar Metallurgical Grade 2487.5

Iridium (Platinum Group) 0.3

Lead 88,464.8 3

Manganese Dioxide Battery Grade Natural 63.5

Manganese Dioxide Battery Grade Synthetic 4,158.5

Manganese Ferro (C and Si) 7,897.0

Manganese Metal--Electrolytic 1,368.8

Manganese Ore Chem/Metal Grade 25,041.8 7

Mercury 35.5

Molybdenum 3,049.0

Nickel 17,311.8 8

Palladium (Platinum Group) 2.3

Platinum (Platinum Group) 0.8

Rubber (natural) 29,490.3 6

Silicon Carbide 8861

Silver 349.5

Tantalum 141.0

Tin 2,867.5

Titanium (sponge) 8,788.5 11

Tungsten 895.0

Vanadium 134.8

Zinc 51,085.5 5

Total: 733,468.1

Source: Reconfiguration of the National Defense Stockpile Report to Congress, April 2009

Every year, the Department of Defense uses nearly three-quarters of a million tons of minerals—everything from aluminum, bauxite and copper to lead, titanium and zinc.

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To help stimulate economic recovery, to secure our future and to remain competitive in a global economy, the United States will need a strategy that encourages investment in the development of our domestic minerals. The reality is the United States remains one of the largest consumers of minerals, but our share of investment in mining is at an all-time low. In the early 1990s, the United States was home to 21 percent of the world’s mining investment. By 2000, our nation’s share of global investment dropped to 10 percent, and today it stands at just 8 percent. As the United States has fallen behind, investment in other areas has steadily grown.

One clear consequence of this lack of investment is an increased dependence on mineral imports. In 2010, the United States imported $5.1 billion worth of mineral materials. Today we are 100 percent dependent on imports for 18 different minerals—many of which are critical to national security and innovative, emerging technologies—and more than 50 percent dependent on imports for tungsten, silver, titanium, cobalt, zinc, platinum, germanium and gallium.

Because the United States is home to a wealth of mineral resources, we do have the ability to reverse our dependence on certain mineral imports. For instance, while China holds the dominant position in the global rare earths market, a significant reserve exists in the United States. An estimated 13 percent of the world’s rare earth reserves are in the United States, with the world’s largest non-Chinese reserve located in Mountain Pass, California. While there is not a single U.S. operation actively refining oxides into pure rare earth metals, with the right steps, the United States could build a robust rare earth supply chain. By one industry calculation, North American rare earth deposits could produce up to 40,000 metric tons of rare earths a year—more than double the amount U.S. industries use today and enough to allow American self-sufficiency in the rare earth market even as demand continues to climb. The same holds true for minerals such as zinc, nickel and platinum group metals.

With common sense policy actions, we can increase access to our domestic resources in ways that are good for our economy and safe for local communities, mining employees and our environment. What do these actions look like?

To begin, we can and should modernize the permitting process to shorten the time it takes to acquire a permit for mining. The U.S. minerals mining industry fully supports thorough review of all necessary permits and approvals for new projects. However, it now takes five to 10 years for a permit to be granted—an unnecessary delay caused in large part by a current process that requires redundant reviews at federal and state levels, often by multiple agencies. This process and timeframe is dramatically out of touch with the speed at which the technologies that depend on minerals are being developed. More importantly, the United States’ standing as the worst among 25 countries for permitting delays has caused the U.S. share of global investment in mining to decline over the last 20 years.

Despite the fact that the permitting process has become increasingly difficult over the years, mining companies not only comply with federal and state laws regarding land use, but also continue to invest heavily in the research and development of new technologies and processes to minimize environmental impact. Today, mining companies set aside significant amounts of money each year in the form of bonds to pay for restoration of mined land. While these measures—along with a rigorous permitting process—are necessary, what is ultimately needed is a streamlined permitting process that accomplishes the dual objectives of protecting the environment and stimulating job creation and economic opportunity in the United States.

Secondly, a consistent, rigorous and sound regulatory framework is needed to encourage added investment. Over the years, well-designed regulations have helped usher in advancements in both envi-ronmental protection and worker safety—making the United States one of the safest and most environmentally cautious places in the world for mining.

Arsenic (trioxide); Asbestos; Bauxite and Alumina; Cesium; Fluorspar; Graphite (natural); Indium; Manganese; Mica, sheet (natural); Niobium (columbium); Quartz Crystal (industrial); Rare Earths; Rubidium; Strontium; Tantalum; Thallium; Thorium; Yttrium

100%

Gallium, Gemstones 99%Bismuth, Platinum 94%Antimony 93%Germanium 90%Iodine 88%Rhenium 86%Diamond (dust, grit and powder), Stone (dimension) 85%Potash 83%Cobalt, Titanium Mineral Concentrates 81%Silicon Carbide, Zinc 77%Barite 76%Tin, Vanadium 69%Tungsten 68%Silver 65%Titanium (sponge) 64%Peat 59%Palladium 58%Chromium 56%Magnesium Compounds 53%Beryllium 47%Silicon (ferrosilicon) 44%Lithium, Nickel, Nitrogen (fixed), Ammonia 43%Aluminum 38%Magnesium Metal 34%Gold 33%Copper 30%Mica, scrap and flake (natural) 27%Garnet (industrial), Perlite 25%Salt 24%Vermiculite 22%Sulfur 17%

Gypsum, Phosphate Rock 15%

Iron and Steel Slag 10%

Cement 8%

Iron and Steel, Pumice 7%

Diamond (natural industrial stone) 3%

Lime 2%

Stone (crushed) 1%

Today, more than three dozen federal environmental laws and regulations—in addition to laws at the state and local level—are in place, governing all aspects of mining. Such policies guarantee that mined land is reclaimed and restored to productive uses, and that air and water resources, as well as wildlife, are protected. As we look to the future, we must ensure that regulations evolve to meet new challenges and realities. At the same time, however, we must make certain that regulations are consistently guided by sound science and not driven by political agendas. To keep our doors open to investment, we must ensure the system consistently balances environmental and social concerns with our nation’s economic interests.

Lastly, predictable and non-punitive economic policies are important for investment in mining to grow. While the United States has compelling attributes, including a stable government and an educated workforce, its economic policies must remain competitive in order to attract investments. At 35 percent, the United States’ corporate tax rate is among the highest in the world. In addition, mining is subject to various state taxes and levies, pays high wages and complies with strict environmental and safety requirements. These and other factors contribute to U.S. minerals mining’s cost burden. Nonetheless, U.S. minerals mining is committed to paying its fair share and to working with local, state and federal governments to ensure economic policies do not make mining in the United States far less attractive than it could be. With these steps to encourage investment in the nation’s minerals resources, with continued stewardship of the environment and with worker safety put first, America’s minerals industry can lead the way to a more secure and more prosperous future.

Permitting Process Story

Mining activities are regulated by

numerous state and federal laws and

regulations—some with overlapping

jurisdictions—that cover how a mine

will be constructed, operated and

reclaimed after mining ceases, and

how the mine will meet environmental

and other requirements. Because of the

complexity of the regulatory process,

it can take from five to 10 years to

obtain the needed permits to expand

or build a mine. For example, before

they received a permit to operate the

mine, operators of a Nevada gold mine

worked for at least six years with 10

government agencies.

2010 U.S. Net Import Reliance for Selected Nonfuel Mineral Materials

Source: U.S. Geological Survey

Source: U.S. Geological Survey

Contact UsMinerals Make Life is a National Mining Association initiative created to share information about minerals mining and its importance to the economy, innovation for the future and national security. If you have questions or comments, please contact:

Jamie Caswell jcaswell@nma.org(202) 463-2667

www.mineralsmakelife.orgTwitter handle: @MiningFan

101 Constitution Ave. N.W. Suite 500 East Washington, DC 20001 www.nma.org (202) 463-2600