Mining bills fail to pass house setting America up for industrial disaster

[SwordfishMining]

by Jeniffer Solis, Nevada Current

Nevada’s lone congressional Republican suffered a blow this week after six members of his own party joined Democrats to block a bill he authored to address a court ruling adopting a stricter interpretation of the 150-year-old General Mining Law.

Mining developers looking to extract minerals in Nevada are grappling with the aftermath of a 2022 U.S. appellate court ruling that essentially restricted mining companies from dumping waste on federal lands. While federal mining law allows companies to mine on federal land where economically valuable minerals are present, the federal court decision ruled that companies are not guaranteed the right to use adjacent federal land without valuable minerals for related purposes – such as waste rock disposal or running power lines. The Mining Regulatory Clarity Act of 2024 — introduced by Nevada Republican Rep. Mark Amodei —would respond to the ruling by removing a provision in an 1872 federal mining law that mining companies must show a mineral deposit is present before building roads and other support facilities at a potential site.

However, the legislation died on the House floor Wednesday after a 210-206 vote to send the bill back to the House Natural Resources committee. Amodei’s office did not respond in time for publication. Six hard-line Republicans — Andy Biggs and Eli Crane of Arizona, Dan Bishop of North Carolina, Bob Good of Virginia and Matt Gaetz and Anna Paulina Luna of Florida — voted with all Democrats to block the bill. During floor debate, Republicans argued the bill was needed to clarify a 2022 federal appeals court decision that blocked approvals for mining support facilities at an Arizona copper mine.

“The decision limited the ability of the Forest Service to approve necessary mining support facilities and activity, which is necessary for mining operations,” Minnesota Republican Pete Stauber said Wednesday. The decision “put virtually every new domestic mining project in jeopardy.” In Nevada, the appellate court ruling has the potential to send mining projects — years in the making — back to square one. In the case of a planned molybdenum mine by Nevada-based developer Eureka Moly LLC, a district court judge vacated the 2019 Bureau of Land Management’s approval of the project after ruling the developer did not have the right to dump waste rock on federal land without valuable mineral deposits.

more about Bidens war on America: https://thisisreno.com/2024/05/amodeis- ... led-house/

Both Republicans and Democrats in the U.S. Senate have described the federal appeals court decision as “a significant departure from long-held mining practices.” Last year, Nevada Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto has proposed a similar bill — the Mining Regulatory Clarity Act — that would make it legal to use part of a mining claim for mining related purposes on land without valuable minerals, including waste rock disposal.

Sen Mastos' article

Bipartisan Bill Would Stop Misguided Rosemont Decision From Blocking Essential Mining Projects in Nevada

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) and Jim Risch (R-Idaho) introduced the Mining Regulatory Clarity Act to allow critical mineral production to continue in the West. This legislation would address the recent Rosemont judicial decision, which could upend responsible mining projects by prohibiting mining-support activities, like waste or processing, on lands that do not contain economically valuable minerals. The decision is a significant departure from long-held mining practices and, without congressional action, could threaten critical mineral projects across the West. This legislation is cosponsored by Senators Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.), Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.), and Mike Crapo (R-Idaho).

“Nevada’s critical minerals are the key to our clean energy future, and we must make sure to support responsible mining and the tens of thousands of good-paying jobs it provides in our state,” said Senator Cortez Masto. “This misguided decision would force all mining activities, even the storage of waste, to happen on mineral-rich land, which could impede critical mineral production all across the country. This bipartisan legislation will undo the damage of this decision, allow mining operations to continue under long-standing and historic application of the law, and protect the good-paying jobs this industry supports in our state.”

“We rely on mineral resources every day for everything from energy to technology to national defense. Now more than ever, it is critical we are doing all we can to increase domestic production in states like Idaho, where we have rich mineral resources,” said Senator Risch. “The Mining Regulatory Clarity Act will ensure mining projects in Idaho and across the West can continue to operate efficiently and responsibility.”

“Without strong leadership, the nation’s alarming mineral import dependence is poised to go from bad to worse as demand for minerals essential to our manufacturing and energy futures as well as our national security skyrocket,” said National Mining Association President and CEO Rich Nolan. “The bipartisan Mining Regulatory Clarity Act is critically important to ensuring the U.S. can use our vast domestic resources to build the essential mineral supply chains we know we must have. This legislation codifies more than a century of Supreme Court decisions on the Mining Law, ensuring the fundamental ability to conduct responsible mining activities on federal lands. Regulatory certainty, or the lack thereof, will either underpin or undermine efforts to meet the extraordinary mineral demand now at our doorstep.”

“The Nevada Mining Association welcomes the introduction of this important bipartisan legislation and thanks Senator Cortez Masto for her steadfast support of Nevada’s mining industry. Through the responsible extraction of metals and minerals, Nevada’s mining industry is essential to the nation’s future in clean energy production and transmission. This legislation will ensure that the industry will continue to provide the foundational elements required for a strong and secure supply chain,” said Dana Bennett, Interim President of Nevada Mining Association.

“Mining is one of the pillars of Nevada’s economy, and ensuring clarity around mining claims is essential to our state’s economic development and our country’s green energy future,” said Rob Benner, Secretary-Treasurer of the Northern Nevada Central Labor Council. “We thank Senator Cortez Masto for bringing forward the Mining Regulatory Clarity Act. Clarifying this regulation will help ensure and create thousands of good union jobs for Nevadans.”

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