WASHINGTON, D.C. – The National Mining Association (NMA) today applauded the release of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) draft revised critical minerals list, which now includes copper, lead, potash, rhenium, silicon and silver. In releasing the draft list, the USGS noted that it does not include uranium or metallurgical coal, as both are considered “fuels,” which are currently excluded from the list, but that the Secretary of the Interior has the discretion to add both with the final list when it is published in 30 days.
Rich Nolan, president & CEO of the NMA, had the following comment: “We applaud the USGS for updating its critical minerals list with a number of minerals that are essential to everything from rebuilding and modernizing the nation’s infrastructure to supporting our national security and providing the irreplaceable inputs to advance our technological leadership. At the same time, the NMA believes all minerals are critical. Many so-called critical minerals are only found because they are either co-located with or are produced in the processing of other minerals. And the rapid pace of innovation means the minerals used in today’s technologies may be different than those needed tomorrow. Given those realities, any policies applied to a critical mineral listing should be applicable to all U.S. mined materials.”
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