Danny Ervin writes about the need for permitting reform in RealClearEnergy.
- The U.S. depends on China for more than half of the rare earth minerals that are needed to power wind turbines, cell phones, and fighter jets.
- While once a global leader in rare metal mining, the U.S. has fallen woefully behind due in large part to excessive and harmful regulations.
- It can take as long as 10 years for a new mine to get permitted to be built.
- To have a more secure energy and economic future, lawmakers should modernize permitting to allow more mining, energy, and transmission projects to get built.
“We should stop pretending that domestic mining is unessential. The best way to keep the competition for minerals from erupting into a conflict with China is for the U.S. to do what has served it so well for over a century: to offer a viable alternative to imports based on increased domestic mining. Congress should approve without delay a bill that would streamline the permitting process.”
Read the full article here.
The views and opinions expressed are those of the author’s and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of C3.
