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U.S. House may vote on Rare Earths Act this week
Mineweb ^ | 27 Sep 2010 | Dorothy Kosich

Posted on 10/02/2010 6:46:57 AM PDT by epithermal

Rare-earth metals have important defense applications because of their magnetic strength, which allows for miniaturization of components. A professional military journal, Joint Force Quarterly, has recently published a report asserting that "China appears to be holding an unlikely trump card" in its dominance of the REE industry.

The Pentagon is expected to release a report on the potential national security risks of rare-earth materials dependence next month.

The House Committee on Science and Technology Thursday approved the Rare Earth and Critical Materials Revitalization Act of 2010, which authorizes the U.S. Department of Energy to develop a rare earth materials program "that will restore a long-term, secure and sustainable supply of rare earth materials to meet the needs of the United States."

(Excerpt) Read more at mineweb.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Foreign Affairs; Government
KEYWORDS: china; mining; rareearths
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Here is a rare earths program for you: stop designating wilderness areas until we know what resources are there.
1 posted on 10/02/2010 6:47:00 AM PDT by epithermal
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To: epithermal

I know Pete Rivera, the singer and drummer of Rare Earth. Why is Congress oppressing him?


2 posted on 10/02/2010 6:51:41 AM PDT by LS ("Castles made of sand, fall in the sea . . . eventually." (Hendrix))
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To: epithermal
I believe we're going to have to import tons of rare earth metals to make our new energy efficient cars.

Which probably means a little blackmail and the cars wind up being made in China.

3 posted on 10/02/2010 6:55:56 AM PDT by Sacajaweau (What)
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To: Toddsterpatriot; Mase; expat_panama
The House Committee on Science and Technology Thursday approved the Rare Earth and Critical Materials Revitalization Act of 2010, which authorizes the U.S. Department of Energy to develop a rare earth materials program "that will restore a long-term, secure and sustainable supply of rare earth materials to meet the needs of the United States."

LOL--Any guesses as to how many years will pass before the EPA learns of the new legislative policy?

4 posted on 10/02/2010 6:57:48 AM PDT by 1rudeboy
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To: epithermal

Wind turbines need rare earth metals, too.


5 posted on 10/02/2010 6:58:01 AM PDT by Sacajaweau (What)
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To: epithermal

I have a feeling we’re going to be seeing a lot of legislation in the future, geared toward restoring industries Congress and the rest of government destroyed.


6 posted on 10/02/2010 7:01:51 AM PDT by Psycho_Bunny (Hail To The Fail-In-Chief)
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To: Psycho_Bunny

We have a lot of REEs in this country. I support regulations on clean production. If we mine the minerals it must be done cleanly. It is the EPA and the over reaching “envirowhackos” who are preventing us from extracting OUR REEs


7 posted on 10/02/2010 7:17:07 AM PDT by WellyP
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To: Sacajaweau
Wind turbines need rare earth metals, too.

So does the computer you are on. And the TV you watch. And any radio you listen to.

And every plane you fly on. And almost every car you drive. And all our military aircraft, all our defensive radar systems.

An even more important and more widely used RARE ELEMENT whose loss could really hurt us is CHROME.

Guess where our CHROME comes from?

8 posted on 10/02/2010 7:23:23 AM PDT by UCANSEE2 (lame and ill-informed post)
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To: epithermal

Remember when Clinton turned a lot of land into National Parks and wilderness preserves? I remember one contained the last site in America with low sulfur coal, a gift to the Riyadh’s(sp). I think I remember a similar situation with rare earth minerals. The land was closed and his Chicom friends were left with a monopoly. Am I remembering this correctly?


9 posted on 10/02/2010 7:24:27 AM PDT by SunTzuWu
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To: epithermal

We’ve seen this coming for at least 10 years.
After the cold war ended, strategic planning was no longer sexy.
Time to help Afgahnistan industialize and market their natural resources (to us).
The problem will be to inject capitalizm into a 12th century culture.


10 posted on 10/02/2010 7:25:31 AM PDT by G Larry (Patty-cake diplomacy must give way to strong, decisive action!)
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To: UCANSEE2
Cuba I think. They have huge supplies of Nickle.
11 posted on 10/02/2010 7:28:20 AM PDT by WellyP
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To: WellyP

I was wrong, it’s S. Africa

Spoornet : Chrome
Up to 80% of the world’s known chrome ore reserves are in Southern Africa and SA producers, who supply in excess of 60% of the world’s ferrochrome ...
www.spoornet.co.za/SpoornetWebContentSAP/.../chrome.htm - Cached - Similar


12 posted on 10/02/2010 7:32:42 AM PDT by WellyP
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To: WellyP
We have a lot of REEs in this country.

Yes we do. Most of them are locked up in the Escalante Grand Staircase National Park. Courtesy of Bill Clinton.

Which forced us to buy them from CHINA and the LIPPO GROUP.

13 posted on 10/02/2010 7:37:56 AM PDT by UCANSEE2 (lame and ill-informed post)
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To: epithermal
The House Committee on Science and Technology Thursday approved the Rare Earth and Critical Materials Revitalization Act of 2010, which authorizes the U.S. Department of Energy to develop a rare earth materials program "that will restore a long-term, secure and sustainable supply of rare earth materials to meet the needs of the United States."

And if any deposits are found in the United States, the Obama Administration will lead the way in preventing them from being mined - in the name of environmentalism, of course.

14 posted on 10/02/2010 7:40:39 AM PDT by dirtboy
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To: SunTzuWu
Am I remembering this correctly?

You are close.

It was Mochtar Riady, and the LIPPO GROUP.

The areas with REE and COAL were the Grand Staircase, the Kaiparowits Plateau, and the Canyons of the Escalante.

15 posted on 10/02/2010 7:45:23 AM PDT by UCANSEE2 (lame and ill-informed post)
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To: WellyP

About two-fifths of the chromite ores and concentrates in the world are produced in South Africa, while Kazakhstan, India, Russia, and Turkey are also substantial producers. Untapped chromite deposits are plentiful, but geographically concentrated in Kazakhstan and southern Africa.

Source:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chromium


16 posted on 10/02/2010 7:48:34 AM PDT by UCANSEE2 (lame and ill-informed post)
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To: dirtboy
And if any deposits are found in the United States, the Obama Administration will lead the way in preventing them from being mined - in the name of environmentalism, of course.

TOO LATE. REEs have been found in the US, and BILL CLINTON already locked them up.

17 posted on 10/02/2010 7:50:18 AM PDT by UCANSEE2 (lame and ill-informed post)
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To: Sacajaweau

Certainly, we are going to have to import a great deal of lithium for the battery-run green economy; although not a rare earth is still a very scarce commodity. Thank God the Canadians are working on the problem. We could mine lithium here in the USA, expecially in Nevada, but the NIMBY group have aleady won that battle, just as they have won the battle to halt the mining of rare earths.


18 posted on 10/02/2010 7:55:04 AM PDT by Melchior
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To: UCANSEE2
Guess where our CHROME comes from?

ALBANIA!

19 posted on 10/02/2010 7:57:13 AM PDT by Alter Kaker (Gravitation is a theory, not a fact. It should be approached with an open mind...)
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To: SunTzuWu
Remember when Clinton turned a lot of land into National Parks and wilderness preserves?

Actually, that was a present to his Indonesian pal, who had bribed him with large contributions. I forget the name, but he exported "clean" coal to the U.S.

This is about the response to the Chinese rare earth threat that I expected. They will think about it. And then, after enough years have passed thinking about it, they will pass new regulations to make rare earth mining in the U.S. even more difficult.

20 posted on 10/02/2010 8:22:07 AM PDT by Cicero (Marcus Tullius.)
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