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The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee’s Subcommittee on Public Lands, Forests, and Mining heard testimony yesterday on two bills that would significantly alter how hardrock mining is regulated on our public lands: the Clean Energy Minerals Reform Act, a long overdue update of the nation’s mining laws which would bring hardrock mining into the 21st century, and the Mining Regulatory Clarity Act, which would be worse than the Civil War-era status quo in its giveaway of the nations’ public lands for mining companies to use as free trash dumps.
At the hearing, officials from the Department of the Interior and U.S. Forest Service testified against the Mining Regulatory Clarity Act. “As written, the bill could lead to a number of unintended consequences,” said Steve Feldgus, deputy assistant Interior secretary for land and minerals management. “In particular, granting claimants the right of use and occupancy prior to showing the discovery of a valuable mineral greatly expands the rights conferred under the mining law.” Chris Wood, CEO of Trout Unlimited, said the bill doesn’t distinguish between lands open for mining from those that have been withdrawn and could make it unlawful to deny mining or exploration on protected public lands.
The administration officials voiced their support for the Clean Energy Minerals Reform Act, introduced by Senator Martin Heinrich of New Mexico, which would make several urgently needed and long overdue reforms to the General Mining Law of 1872. The reforms include: creating a leasing system for hardrock mining similar to the system that already exists for oil and gas; requiring, for the first time, that mining companies pay a royalty to taxpayers for minerals extracted from public lands; and charging companies a fee that will fund reclamation of abandoned mines.
The Center for Western Priorities’ Winning the West poll, conducted in July 2023, surveyed voters in Arizona, Colorado, and Nevada on their concerns around mining on public lands. When asked how important it is to update the General Mining Law of 1872, 84 percent of respondents said it’s important, with 36 percent indicating it’s very important. 68 percent of respondents prefer an approach that includes modernizing our mining laws, preventing companies from dumping mining waste on public lands, and requiring companies to pay royalties on the minerals they extract.
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Westerners have been living with the consequences of inadequate safeguards for the past 150 years and they want to see these safeguards updated to better protect communities and landscapes from irresponsible mining. The clean energy transition is not an excuse to take shortcuts around our bedrock environmental protections, and should not come at the expense of the health of Western communities and landscapes.”
