ARPN will continue the tireless task of applying information to correct this conceptual contradiction. Meanwhile, we are pleased to point to a new Greenness Metric, developed by Dr. Steve Hanke, of Johns Hopkins, the Cato Institute and advisor to the Advanced Metallurgical Group (AMG), and AMG CEO Dr. Heinz Schimmelbusch.

It’s a strong step towards crediting production of the metals and minerals for their role in the Green transition. Here’s hoping it’s a metric others will adopt.

The post “Measuring Greenness:” A New Metric Takes the Measure of the Metals that Drive the Green Transition appeared first on American Resources Policy Network.

Bloomberg reports:

“China may stockpile more medium-to-heavy rare earths this year such as terbium, lutetium and yttrium, which are used in applications ranging from lasers to nuclear reactors, said China Merchants’ Peng [Bo].

“China’s own industrial sector, in its rudimentary form, isn’t yet able to make full use of the country’s output, Peng said. The government is likely to hoard these elements for future use, she said.

“‘The mining and refining industry, hampered by a drastic slump in prices, sees the purchase as a life-saver,’ said Chen Huan, an analyst at Beijing Antaike Information Development Co. ‘Prices the government agreed to pay are much higher than the prevailing market price.’”

In March, the World Trade Organization ruled in favor of the U.S., Japan and EU’s contention that China’s Rare Earths export quotas were not justified. As a source within one of China’s state-owned enterprises told Bloomberg:

“‘China is facing imminent pressure to abolish the export quota, so stockpiling is part of the policy reaction to help prop up prices and keep more of the resources at home for future use.’”

As a follow-on, ARPN will share any U.S. Government reaction to this move – if in fact there is a reaction.

The post The Geo-Politics of Rare Earths: China Reported to Add to Stockpile appeared first on American Resources Policy Network.

Noting a common thread between new pushes for EPA to use its pre-emptive veto to stop potential mines in Minnesota, Oregon and Wisconsin, Dan writes:

“What these projects have in common is that none has put forward an actual mine plan. This action would trigger a thorough mine review, as required under the National Environmental Policy Act. For more than 40 years NEPA has defined the process by which a mine plan is evaluated. Under the law, every one of the concerns raised by opponents to the Wisconsin, Minnesota and Oregon mines would be aired publicly, examined by scientists and a range of technical experts, before approval is granted or denied. Now, using Pebble Mine as precedent, anti-mining activists are urging the EPA to ignore NEPA and bar mining projects with no review necessary.”

As Dan wrote in a previous Wall Street Journal piece:

“If the EPA reinterprets existing law—Section 404 of the Clean Water Act—and grants itself unilateral authority to stop the permitting process before it begins, Pebble Mine won’t be the only project in its cross hairs, and copper won’t be the only metal.”

Add potential projects in Minnesota, Wisconsin and Oregon to what may well be a growing list.

Read the full piece HERE.

The post ARPN’s Daniel McGroarty in the Wall Street Journal appeared first on American Resources Policy Network.

So how does the U.S. stack up compared to other mining nations?

“In this year’s report, the U.S. appears to have improved its overall ranking, but this is only an “optical illusion.” In 2013, other mining countries became less hospitable to mining at a faster pace than the U.S. The fact that Russia, DRC and China’s permitting delays are metastasizing more rapidly than ours is hardly a point of pride.

“The fact is, it doesn’t have to be this way. The U.S. is remarkably resource-rich, from aluminum to zinc, and many minerals in between. Our substantial mineral endowment provides the U.S. the ability to build a sustainable industry, play a leadership role in the world’s commodity markets, and minimize our growing exposure to the geo-political and economic risks of resource dependency.

“To a large degree the steady accretion of federal policy got us in this mess; policy reform will lead us out.”

But there’s a precursor to sound policy. According to McGroarty and McCurdy,

“…the nation needs a change in mind-set: It’s time to remind ourselves that life as we know it is made possible by the inventive use of metals and minerals. Smart phones, the Cloud, the Internet: These things may seem to work by magic, but quite often the backbone of high-tech is mineral and metal, not fairy dust. Failure to mine what we can here in the U.S. simply perpetuates dangerous dependencies on nations that may not wish us well.

“Responsible development of domestic mineral resources should be a policy priority. Our ability to grow our economy, revive American industry, and safeguard our national security – depends upon it. Maybe by the time next year’s “Where Not to Invest” report comes along, the U.S. will be seen as having reversed course, putting our economy on a path to a resource-driven recovery.”

The post Made in America Starts with Mined in America appeared first on American Resources Policy Network.

“What would Alaskans say if a federal agency retroactively vetoed permits for development of Prudhoe Bay, declaring it never should have been allowed on the North Slope?

What would we think if a federal agency unilaterally banned development in the non-wilderness portion of ANWR?

And what if a federal agency halted efforts to reopen the Nikiski LNG terminal, without any right of appeal, because a tiny portion of the property was once considered wetlands?

While these scenarios might have once seemed far-fetched, all of them – and more – will be possible if the dramatic expansion of EPA’s power under the Clean Water Act continues unchecked.”

Murkowski proceeds to reference her co-sponsorship of S 2156,“The Regulatory Fairness Act,” introduced by Senator David Vitter (R-LA) and Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV). The bill — at 396 words, a marvel of brevity in the word fog enveloping today’s Washington – aims to put guard rails back on EPA’s authority, declaring that the agency shall have no power to preemptively veto a project that has not yet presented a plan for permitting, nor shall it have ex post facto power to claw back a permit already lawfully granted. ARPN readers will recognize the preemptive and ex post facto cases as the proposed multi-metal Pebble Mine in Alaska – where EPA created a pre-approval process so onerous that both major mining investors paired with the Pebble team withdrew from the project — and the Spruce coal mine in West Virginia, which saw its permit rescinded by EPA two years after it was granted.

Murkowski notes that the proposed bill “does not eliminate EPA’s veto power or prohibit the protection of any lands and waters. It does not make it easier for a project to win approval, or weaken the environmental review process that major projects must undergo. Instead, the bill establishes a reasonable and reliable timeframe for EPA to issue any vetoes it determines necessary.”

In other words, it restores EPA’s authority to the status quo ante – before the agency began to stretch its own powers in ways that will cast a chilling effect not just over mining projects, but as ARPN’s Dan McGroarty has argued, over economic development in sectors as varied as construction, transportation, manufacturing and even agriculture.

As much as $220 billion in economic development comes under EPA’s review each year, a dollar value that will only rise if the Agency succeeds in taking the law into its own hands. It remains to be seen if Congress, as law-maker, takes it back.

The post EPA Overreach: Headed for Congressional Push-Back? appeared first on American Resources Policy Network.

“…the issue isn’t just mining. Couple the expansive new water rule to EPA’s unilateral extension of its “dredge and fill” powers, and there’s no reason that oil and gas projects won’t be next. Ditto major construction, transportation routes, and manufacturing plants. Even the American farmer is now in EPA’s cross-hairs.”

America’s farmers are now weighing in. According to Chris Chinn, a Missouri family farmer:

“Congress writes the laws of the land, not federal agencies. When Congress created the Clean Water Act, it clearly limited federal regulatory power to “navigable” waters. Congress did not intend to allow EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers to regulate farmland just because water occasionally flows across it. EPA should respect the limits set by Congress.”

Read the piece in full to see how EPA’s self-styled “clarification” of federal water rules portends a radical redefinition of the regulatory regime for America’s farmers, and anyone else who puts a shovel in the ground.

The post Farmers React to EPA’s New Water Rule appeared first on American Resources Policy Network.

Says Berry: “Phosphate, a mineral crucial for healthy crop growth, has been lost in this debate, but I do not expect this to remain the same for much longer. With global population growing (forecast to be 30% larger than today by 2050) and arable land decreasing, the role of fertilizers like phosphate promises to become more pronounced.”

For a closer look at phosphate and the food security issue — as well as Chris’ other analytical work — see his piece at house-mountain.com/research/

The post Food Security: The Rising Resource Challenge appeared first on American Resources Policy Network.

ARPN President Dan McGroarty examines John Podesta’s new appointment as special adviser to President Obama and what it means for future domestic environmental projects today on Real Clear World. Podesta previously served as chief of staff under Bill Clinton and founded the Center for American Progress.

The post Podesta’s Predicament: Dan McGroarty on the former Clinton chief of staff’s new appointment appeared first on American Resources Policy Network.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The American Resources Policy Network has
 announced that Tracy Weslosky, Publisher and Editor-in-Chief for InvestorIntel, a global investment source for the resource, energy and technology sectors, and a member of the American Resources Policy Network panel of experts, will expand her role at the organization to serve as Advisor on Advanced Materials.

Founder and CEO for ProEdge, an online publisher and media production company since 2001, which owns InvestorIntel, Weslosky is also the Managing Director of REE Stocks Company Ltd. (REE Stocks). Weslosky is an authority in the resource, oil and gas, energy, technology and entertainment industry sectors. Her more-than-twenty years of experience encompass owning her own boutique investment banking and investor relations firm, as well as numerous speaking engagements and publications in the rare earths and critical materials sector, including the renowned REE Handbook – the ultimate guide on rare earths.

Says American Resources Principal Daniel McGroarty: “We’re thrilled to have Tracy expand her role at ARPN to advise us on advanced materials. With the global race for resources in full swing, the importance of this broad and fast-evolving field cannot be stressed enough, and Tracy undoubtedly has her finger on the pulse here.”

He adds: “Tracy’s vast experience in the sector will be an asset to furthering the American Resources Policy Network’s mission to promote the exploration and development of the vast mineral resources we’re fortunate to have beneath our soil, and I look forward to collaborating with her.”

To learn more about the American Resources team and our panelists,
 please visit our experts page.

The post American Resources Policy Network announces new Advisor on Advanced Materials appeared first on American Resources Policy Network.

While the Government Shutdown dominates the news channels and occupies the pundits, the U.S. Congress continues to conduct business with potentially far-reaching impact on the U.S. economy and national security.

Case in point: Debate concerning H.R. 687, the Southeast Arizona Land Exchange and Conservation Act – a meticulously crafted bill that would allow a proposed Arizona copper mine to proceed, with the mining company donating 5,000 acres of high-quality conservation land to the federal government. Anti-mining activists are using the Great Shutdown as cover to float an amendment to the land swap bill that, if adopted, in the words of one Capitol Hill reporter, “…would become the environmentalists’ most powerful tool to kill economic development throughout the nation.”

The proposed amendment “would empower the Secretary of Interior to override existing laws that protect tribal sacred sites and designate land as an Indian ‘cultural site’” – authority anti-mine activists would use to press for a decision derailing the copper mine. The amendment’s backers “argue that any land where Native Americans have prayed and gathered is enough to trigger the designation. Is there any land in the United States that does not meet that threshold?”

But, the report goes on, that’s not what “has environmentalists’ mouths watering:”

“Many observers believe that this precedent-setting amendment is a dry run to kill the Keystone Pipeline project specifically and set up a new paradigm for development in America. Can anyone say with a straight face that somewhere along the thousands of miles of pipes, there will not be a parcel of land where Native Americans once slept, gathered or ate?”

This sweeping new Executive Branch authority comes as anti-mining advocates continue their campaign to have the EPA “discover” in legislative language written 40 years ago a pre-emptive veto power over mining projects that have not even presented a mine plan for permitting. Witness the recent decision by one of the partners in Alaska’s proposed Pebble copper and multi-metal mine to pull out of the project — now claimed as a victory by groups like Earthworks, who have never found a single mine that meets their standards.

As our own Daniel McGroarty has noted, these efforts typically begin with a single mine and a single metal, but the chilling effect is felt across the entire U.S. resource development sector, derailing projects that could produce the metals and minerals that feed American manufacturing – and perpetuating foreign metal dependencies to the detriment to the U.S. economy and, in many cases, our national security.

One day the Great Government Shutdown will end. Here’s hoping that when the Federal Government gears up again, the country won’t find that Congress has created a federal Economic Development Czar with the ultimate power over projects that affect our economic strength and technological progress.

The post Will Congress Create an Economic Czar With Unchecked Power Over U.S. Mines, Pipelines, and Railways? appeared first on American Resources Policy Network.