America First Means More Mines
While the best-known part of an “America First” energy policy is reversing the Biden-Harris administration’s burdensome regulations on new oil and gas drilling, Republicans should also think more broadly about how to take even fuller advantage of America’s natural resources. Properly understood, a strategy to harness the full power of domestic energy reserves includes greater extraction of minerals such as copper, nickel, lithium, palladium, and cobalt.
Beyond serving as crucial inputs for smartphones, rechargeable battery electrodes, and stainless steel, to name just a few, these resources are essential to American security. Yet despite the rising threats of foreign dependence on these resources, America’s permitting regime has yet to reflect the urgency of rising great power competition with China. Without new growth, our efforts to date will fall glaringly short. Consider this: according to a recent S&P Global report, only three domestic mines have been brought into production since 2002. Another five have begun development applications but have yet to come online. One project, Lithium Nevada, discovered its target deposit in 1978 and is approaching nearly a half-century of wait time.
Fortunately, Senator John Barrasso (R-SD) and co-sponsor Joe Manchin (I-WV) are leading the way towards much-needed permitting reform, the Energy Permitting Reform Act of 2024. These adjustments to the legal regime governing natural resource extraction will enable the private sector to break ground on several key projects that, to date, have been unable to move forward due to burdensome regulation.
The bill addresses several stiff headwinds facing domestic producers. The S&P Global report revealed that it takes almost three decades to move from the discovery of a deposit to a functioning mine in the United States, the second least efficient timeline in the world. Only in Zambia does the process take longer: thirty-four years. Given the uncertainties inherent to the global market for these commodities, these long development lead times make private capital hesitant to invest. This is particularly burdensome on federal lands, which comprise roughly half the land in the mineral-rich western U.S.
The Barrasso-Manchin bill aims to address these constraints in two key ways.
First, it establishes a 150-day statute of limitations for opponents of projects to call for judicial review by a permitting agency under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). Currently, NEPA allows frivolous lawsuits to delay projects at any time. While a full NEPA overhaul will be required later, the proposed time limit on costly lawfare is critical for advancing more mining projects down the path towards production—and giving private capital more confidence in their investments.
Second, the bill suggests a compromise to address the 2019 Rosemont court decision, which made the approval process for auxiliary mine processes (waste disposal, storage, shipping, etc.) even more burdensome. The solution outlined in the Barasso-Manchin bill is to permit “mill sites” for these activities, correcting the flawed Rosemont decision and significantly improving mining operations’ efficiency and financial viability.
Congress would be wise to pass the Barasso-Manchin bill and advance further reforms to NEPA, the Clean Air Act, and the Clean Water Act. These reforms would generate further momentum from private sector stakeholders who can take leadership in developing critical infrastructure projects while advancing national security and clean energy priorities.
Well-established and globally diversified partners with longstanding, reliable U.S. supply chains can help realize America’s full potential for mineral sources, particularly as America’s mining sector has been hollowed out by overregulation and rampant environmental activism. In place of a vibrant mining sector, Americans have been left with yet another honorable mention behind a rapidly booming China, which now ranks above the United States in the number of top fifty mining corporations. However, America is not without ready projects to restore global competitiveness.
It’s long been clear to conservatives that the energy that powers America’s economy should be American-made. But more work is needed beyond the familiar world of fossil fuels. Republicans should also support reforms that help us take control of the mineral supply chains that power American high-tech industries, especially as they apply to national defense and help us meet conservation goals. The Barrasso-Manchin reforms are the first critical step towards a more impactful working relationship between the U.S. government and private capital that weans America off foreign resource dependence on our rivals. It’s time for Americans to take back control of our energy destiny.
Samuel Buchan is an energy and foreign policy strategist who recently served as the Director of the Center for Energy & Environment at the America First Policy Institute. He also served as the Director of International Economic Policy at both the National Security Council and National Economic Council and as Senior Advisor to Secretaries of Energy Rick Perry and Dan Brouillette.
Image: Reyhan Reynardot / Shutterstock.com.