US mining permit review process may be shortened

In order to increase domestic production of minerals used in electric vehicles, United States mining corporations, automakers, and members of congress from both major political parties are advocating that the federal government reduce the amount of time required to get a permit for a new mine.

The requests, which were presented this week to a committee in the US, propose changes to the General Mining Law of 1872.

These requests come at a time when the electric vehicle industry in the country is coming under increasing pressure to source lithium, copper, and other minerals from domestic or ally sources.

Since February, the Interagency Working Group on Mining Reform has been investigating the many ways in which the law, which now controls hard rock mining on territory owned by the United States Government, may be altered.

The deadline for public responses was this week. Any changes would need the consent of congress and US President Joe Biden.

According to a letter that was submitted to the committee by Ford Motor Co chief government affairs officer Chris Smith the “lengthy, costly, and inefficient permitting process” make it difficult for businesses to invest in the extraction and processing of critical minerals in the United States.

Additionally, Freeport-McMoRan Inc, the biggest copper producer in the United States, that the red metal be included to a list of minerals here that are deemed vital for the nation’s security as well as the economy.

Nevada senator Catherine Cortez Masto and Arizona senator Mark Kelly have signed a bipartisan letter calling for a more simplified procedure for obtaining mining permits.

Since the early 2000s, Lithium Americas Corporation and Rio Tinto (ASX: RIO) have been working on plans to build mines in the state of Nevada and the state of Arizona respectively.

EV manufacturers support the push

Ford, which has lithium supply arrangements with advanced Nevada explorer ioneer (ASX: INR) and Utah’s Compass Minerals International Inc, has requested for mine permits to be sped up, along with more openness in the review process, and for the federal government to increase its support of geological mapping.

Electric vehicle manufacturer Rivian Automotive Inc said that it backs reform of mine permits “done in a more efficient and coordinated way.”

The licencing of a mine by the state and the federal governments can take more than a decade; although the same process takes just a few years on average in countries like Canada and Australia, which both have significant mining industries.

Mining royalty option to appease environmentalists

The mining law in the United States, according to environmentalists, has been in need of revision for several decades.

They advocate for the law’s modification so that it mandates increased recycling and places a greater emphasis on finding ways to mitigate the impact of mining on host communities.

This would also help to avoid some of the negative effects of the production of fossil fuels.

According to Blaine Miller-McFeeley, an attorney with Earthjustice, mining corporations “are frankly abusing the opportunity here to say that mining is the only way forward to get the minerals we need.”

The National Mining Association (NMA), which is the trade group for US miners, agreed with Ford’s requests and asked that a net royalty be set for minerals extracted from federal land rather than a royalty based on gross income.

To the dismay of environmentalists, there is currently no system in place to collect royalties from businesses who mine on federal territory.

Rehabilitating old mines

The NMA is advocating for “good samaritan” legislation, which would absolve a firm of all legal responsibility if it rehabilitates an abandoned mining site.

For example, the Perpetua Resources Corp is attempting to rehabilitate the Stibnite gold property in Idaho, which was contaminated by the mining that took place during World War Two.