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Having just passed and sent Rep. Amodei’s (R-Nev.) H.R. 761, the “National Strategic and Critical Minerals Production Act of 2013,” to the U.S. Senate, the U.S. House of Representatives may vote on a second important piece of legislation with wide-reaching implications for our mineral resource supply issues this week.

After outlining the strategic importance of Rep. Paul Gosar’s (R-Ariz.) H.R. 687, which would approve a land swap for an Arizona copper mine, on The Hill’s Congress Blog, American Resources Principal Daniel McGroarty elaborated on the issue in the Arizona Daily Star. McGroarty makes clear:

“[W]e can never control uncertainties beyond our borders. But with so much in the wider world outside our control, there is one step we can take: We can remove constraints to our own economic growth.

Put simply, if we want to put American manufacturing on a stronger, more stable footing, we need to start by providing the raw materials of manufacturing — metals and minerals — here at home.”

Arizona’s proposed Resolution Copper Mine, a project in need of Congressional legislation subjecting “environmentally valuable” land to federal protection in exchange for resource development on smaller, less “valuable” land, could serve to all but eliminate the United States’ copper gap, which has soared to an “annual 600,000-metric-ton shortfall between the copper we use and the metal produced in American mines.”

The editorial board of the Arizona Republic, the state’s leading newspaper agrees, and has endorsed Rep. Gosar’s legislation, which enjoys bipartisan support from the state’s congressional delegation and has “the potential to be an economic bonanza for our state and a national security boon to our country.” Citing ARPN, the paper argues:

“Copper is essential for electronics, homebuilding, cars and the fast-growing alternative-energy field. Domestic production of copper falls short of demand, which raises national-security issues because copper is essential for weapons systems. A domestic supply is far more reliable. The ore Resolution wants to tap could significantly reduce the gap between demand for copper and domestic production, according to the American Resources Policy Network.

Two-thirds of the copper mined in the United States comes from Arizona, according to this group, a non-profit that supports domestic mineral production. Resolution would tap one of the largest known undeveloped copper reserves in the world to keep our state a major player in copper production.

The benefits of the mine are significant for Arizona and the nation. Too significant to let this project continue to languish.

The House should move this forward.”

Meanwhile, aside from the direct and indirect ramifications from the Arizona land swap bill, the issue is also emblematic of our national mineral resource issues. Having stopped viewing many metals and minerals through a strategic lens, the U.S. finds itself in a precarious position where we there are currently 19 strategic minerals for which we are 100% import dependent.

For the sake of our national security and economic well-being, it is time we pick up that strategic lens again and begin formulating a coherent critical minerals strategy. The fate of Rep. Gosar’s bill (and Rep. Amodei’s bill in the Senate, for that matter) will serve as an indicator whether this message has begun to resonate with our policy makers.

The U.S. House of Representatives may take up Congressman Mark Amodei’s (R, Nev.) H.R. 761, the “National Strategic and Critical Minerals Production Act of 2013,” this week.

The bill ties into the overall context of mineral resource security and our growing minerals deficit, an issue that is of critical importance to our nation’s manufacturing base, as evidenced by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s endorsement of the bill in July this year. In its endorsement letter, the Chamber made clear:

“Of the 25 top mining countries, according to the Behre Dolbear Group’s annual Ranking of Countries for Mining Investment Where “Not to Invest,” the United States is tied with Papua New Guinea for having the most mining permitting delays. As a result, the United States remains a major importer of strategic and critical minerals, despite having vast reserves, and has become increasingly dependent upon foreign sources for these minerals. H.R. 761 would reduce permitting delays while protecting the environment which would in turn increase domestic production of these much needed minerals.”

Another bill of relevance to our readers, which may be considered by the U.S. House of Representatives this week, is Rep. Paul Gosar’s (R, Ariz.) H.R. 687, which would approve a land swap for an Arizona copper mine – an issue that, as recently discussed by ARPN president Daniel McGroarty on The Hill’s Congress Blog, also ties into the context of our growing minerals deficit.

Having had a late start into the intensifying global race for resources, it is about time the U.S. take steps to finally address the issue in a strategic and comprehensive manner – or, as McGroarty phrases it:

“It’s time for the U.S. to adopt a 21st century critical metals strategy – and reform our ever-expanding process. The strength of the U.S. economy – and our national security – depends on it.”

While China has taken steps to position itself in a “resource war that will increasingly define economic growth and national security in the 21st century,” the United States has subjected itself to a dangerous degree of import dependency for critical minerals – that’s the bottom line of American Resources Principal Daniel McGroarty’s new piece for (…) more

While Members of Congress spent some time in their home districts last month, EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy traveled to Alaska to discuss the President’s climate action plan and hear arguments from stakeholders in the Bristol Bay area on the proposed Pebble mine. Opponents of the project used the occasion to once more push for a (…) more

The following post was originally published on InvestorIntel.com on August 16, 2013. It is reprinted with permission below. August 16, 2013 — Tracy Weslosky, Publisher of InvestorIntel interviews Daniel (Dan) McGroarty, Founder and President of Carmot Strategic Consultants in Washington, DC, and Founder and President of the American Resources Policy Network; an expert-led organization focused (…) more

In a new piece for Forbes, American Resources Policy Network principal Daniel McGroarty discusses the EPA’s apparent readiness to unilaterally expand its powers under the Clean Water Act to pre-emptively veto a promising mining project in Alaska – the Pebble Mine. As McGroarty argues, if the EPA were to issue a veto based on its (…) more

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The following post was originally published here on June 25, 2013 by Ken Cohen, vice president of public and government affairs for Exxon Mobile Corporation. It has been reprinted with permission below. Howard Shelanski, the president’s choice to head the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), recently testified at his Senate confirmation hearing. He (…) more

In an effort to challenge China’s near-total supply monopoly and the geopolitical power play that came with it, countries around the world have taken steps to seek alternative sources of supply. With new production coming online in the U.S. and Australia in recent years, along with small-scale production in India, U.S. Geological Survey figures document (…) more