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California metal mine regains luster (- Mountain Pass Mine in the Mojave Desert.
Los Angeles Times ^ | October 14, 2009 | Martin Zimmerman

Posted on 10/14/2009 7:27:18 AM PDT by Ernest_at_the_Beach


The pond that fills the bottom of the Mountain Pass rare-earth metal mine reflects the terraces. Digging is expected to resume by the second half of 2011 after the water is pumped out. (Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)

Reporting from Mountain Pass, Calif. -

Fear of a shortage of rare-earth metals used in high-tech military and industrial products has spawned global efforts to reopen abandoned mines, including the formidable Mountain Pass Mine in California's Mojave Desert.

Discovered in the 1940s by uranium prospectors, Mountain Pass contains an array of rare earths, including cerium and lanthanum, in concentrations almost double those found at the world's biggest rare-earth mine, China's Bayan Obo.

"You're looking at the greatest rare-earth deposit in the world," says operations manager John Benfield as he ushers a visitor around the 2,200-acre site 60 miles southwest of Las Vegas.

Benfield's employer, Molycorp Minerals in Colorado, has just begun a two-year effort to restore Mountain Pass to its former role as a leading global producer. Those plans were given a boost recently amid fears that China was poised to ban exports of some of the scarcer rare-earth metals and to sharply limit shipments of others.


Although the Chinese government has sought to allay those concerns, a possible ban served as a reminder that the Asian nation is nearly the sole source worldwide for rare-earth metals and is likely to remain so for at least the next two years.

"You always want multiple sources for your raw materials," said Jim Hedrick, commodity specialist with the U.S. Geological Survey. "There could be a natural disaster that significantly disrupts the supply, or there could be geopolitical issues. . . .

(Excerpt) Read more at latimes.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; News/Current Events; US: California; US: Nevada
KEYWORDS: hitech; mining; rareearthmetals
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1 posted on 10/14/2009 7:27:18 AM PDT by Ernest_at_the_Beach
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To: NormsRevenge; Grampa Dave; SierraWasp; Marine_Uncle; BOBTHENAILER; SunkenCiv; blam; Fred Nerks

Well , good news....


2 posted on 10/14/2009 7:28:44 AM PDT by Ernest_at_the_Beach (Support Geert Wilders)
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To: Ernest_at_the_Beach
Good news? What about the newly soon to be discovered sand flea that is in danger of extinction?
Oh the Hugh Manatee..
3 posted on 10/14/2009 7:34:01 AM PDT by MaxMax (Obama can't play in the Olympic reindeer games)
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To: Ernest_at_the_Beach

If this mine were anywhere but California I might believe that it would actually start producing again. The nutjobs who inhabit that state will see to it that it doesn’t.


4 posted on 10/14/2009 7:38:08 AM PDT by 43north (11.04.08: the day America committed voluntary suicide)
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To: Ernest_at_the_Beach
How long before ‘Zero’ allows it to be sold to the Chinese?
5 posted on 10/14/2009 7:55:21 AM PDT by Kartographer (".. we mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor.")
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To: Kartographer

How long before DiFi shuts them down for being too close to her Mojave National Preserve?


6 posted on 10/14/2009 8:27:00 AM PDT by Redcloak ("Oh, bother!" said Pooh, as he chambered his last round.)
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To: Ernest_at_the_Beach

Good news unless as fellow Freeper’s correctly state, key environmental groups will force it to stay closed.


7 posted on 10/14/2009 5:13:14 PM PDT by Marine_Uncle (Honor must be earned....)
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To: Ernest_at_the_Beach; All

Now THIS is interesting.....

This mine was SOLD by Chevron at the end of last year to:

Resource Capital Funds, Pegasus Partners IV, LP, The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., Traxys North America LLC and Carint Group LLC. Included in the acquisition is the Molycorp name and upon closing, the company will be renamed Molycorp Minerals LLC.

WELL, WELL, WELL...
Turns out that Pegasus Partners is owned by Chris Cougat. I thought the name sounded familiar, so i started looking. He is a HUGE Contributor to:

The Democrat Senatorial Campaign Committee, the Democrat Congressional Campaign Committee, Chris Dodd, and (TA! DA!) BARACK HUSSEIN OBAMA!!!

As long as CHEVRON Owned this mine, it was NEVER going to be allowed to reopen. Sell it to a bunch of connected, fascist Democrats, and BANG! It’s reopening!!!!


8 posted on 10/14/2009 5:35:12 PM PDT by tcrlaf ("Hope" is the most Evil of all Evils"-Neitzsche)
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To: tcrlaf; All

And, OH LOOK!!!
Traxys CEO Mark S. Cristoff ALSO Gave $20,000 to the DSCC!

I’m beginning to see a trend here, folks....


9 posted on 10/14/2009 5:41:14 PM PDT by tcrlaf ("Hope" is the most Evil of all Evils"-Neitzsche)
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To: tcrlaf; All

OK.. NOW lets look at Resource Capital Management!
From OpenSecrets:
MCCLEMENTS, JAMES
DOVER,DE 19904 NA/RET. MD 12/1/07 $250 Biden, Joseph R Jr (D)
MCCLEMENTS, JAMES B
BOULDER,CO 80304 RESOURCE CAPITAL FUNDS/INVESTOR 6/30/08 $500 Shafroth, William G (D)
MCCLEMENTS, JAMES B
BOULDER,CO 80304 RESOURCE CAPITAL FUNDS/INVESTOR 8/4/08 $500 Shafroth, William G (D)
MCCLEMENTS, JAMES B
BOULDER,CO 80304 RESOURCE CAPITAL FUNDS/INVESTOR 3/23/08 $250 Shafroth, William G (D)

Brian Dolan, RCF Partner-
DOLAN, BRIAN T
DENVER,CO 80202 RESOURCE CAPITAL FUNDS/MANAGER 4/30/08 $1,000 Fitz-Gerald, Joan (D)
DOLAN, BRIAN T
DENVER,CO 80202 PRIVATE EQUITY MANAGER/RCF MANAGEMN 12/24/07 $1,000 Markey, Betsy (D)


10 posted on 10/14/2009 6:11:13 PM PDT by tcrlaf ("Hope" is the most Evil of all Evils"-Neitzsche)
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To: tcrlaf; NormsRevenge; Grampa Dave; SierraWasp; Marine_Uncle; SunkenCiv; blam; Straight Vermonter; ..
Well....excellent work....

*************************************

See posts #8, 9, 10

Fascists at work...no doubt about it!

11 posted on 10/14/2009 6:30:16 PM PDT by Ernest_at_the_Beach (Support Geert Wilders)
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To: MaxMax; 43north; Kartographer; Redcloak; doug from upland; kellynla; EveningStar; Brad's Gramma; ...

See #11.


12 posted on 10/14/2009 6:32:36 PM PDT by Ernest_at_the_Beach (Support Geert Wilders)
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To: tcrlaf

Sold to friends of the Obama, huh?


13 posted on 10/14/2009 6:33:06 PM PDT by GeronL
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To: tcrlaf; All

Did Goldman Sachs finance this deal with TARP MONEY?????


14 posted on 10/14/2009 7:05:13 PM PDT by tcrlaf ("Hope" is the most Evil of all Evils"-Neitzsche)
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To: Ernest_at_the_Beach

Well now we know why the mine was permitted to be reopened. Thanks for the follow up ping.


15 posted on 10/14/2009 7:06:16 PM PDT by Marine_Uncle (Honor must be earned....)
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To: Marine_Uncle; All

This just gets MORE Interesting:

Center for Biological Diversity: Endangered Earth - Online # 339 7/22/2003 1275

PROTEST CHALLENGES RADIOACTIVE MINE WITH LONG HISTORY OF SPILLS NEXT TO MOJAVE NATIONAL PRESERVE

The Center for Biological Diversity, local citizens, and seven other conservation organizations including Great Basin Mine Watch, National Parks Conservation Association, Sierra Club and California Communities Against Toxics, formally objected in June to the proposed expansion of a rare-earth metals mine adjacent to the Mojave National Preserve. Despite its track record of polluting the region’s air, land, and water, Molycorp, Inc. (owned by parent company Unocal) wants to expand and operate its Mountain Pass Mine for another 30 years.

Before ceasing full operations in 1997, the Mountain Pass mine was ranked as one of California’s worst polluters, amassing a dangerous track record of spilling radioactive and toxic wastes.

Over 2,600 chemical, mining waste, and other spills were reported between 1982-1998. Molycorp has been subject to criminal investigation and charged with fines for its irresponsible and dangerous practices and the illegal storage of hazardous mining wastes at the mine site. In 1995 and 1996, Molycorp pipelines spilled hundreds of thousands of gallons of radioactive and toxic wastes including uranium, thorium, and radiumon on BLM lands neighboring the Mojave National Preserve that are critical habitat to the desert tortoise.

Molycorp’s evaporation, tailings, and process ponds have contaminated regional groundwater supplies and air quality. Several children contracted a serious illness while attending the school neighboring the mine.

The California Department of Health found toxic contaminants such as strontium, arsenic, yttrium, and lanthanides were found in the carpet and the dust in the classrooms. Dust blowing from Molycorp’s mine, laden with rare-earth metals, has long been a top suspect as cause of illnesses in children at the Mountain Pass Elementary School and among area residents.


16 posted on 10/14/2009 7:31:20 PM PDT by tcrlaf ("Hope" is the most Evil of all Evils"-Neitzsche)
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To: tcrlaf

Exterminate all environmentalists!!!!


17 posted on 10/14/2009 7:40:26 PM PDT by dalereed
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To: tcrlaf
Some folks here can be very sensitive about comments like some of the biggest capitalist are in cahoots with some of the worst socialist/communist on the planet.
I'm a capitalist. But an American Constitutional, strong America, industrial, manufacturing, research and development, the best for America type patriotic capitalist.
Be damned with all those that scoop up easy money and control things that bring this country down.
IMHO, there is a specific term one can use for the like of them. I believe it is called traitors.
18 posted on 10/14/2009 7:40:39 PM PDT by Marine_Uncle (Honor must be earned....)
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To: Marine_Uncle

“Some folks here can be very sensitive about comments like some of the biggest capitalist are in cahoots with some of the worst socialist/communist on the planet.”

There is a word for this type of arrangement- It’s called FASCISM....


19 posted on 10/14/2009 7:46:01 PM PDT by tcrlaf ("Hope" is the most Evil of all Evils"-Neitzsche)
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To: tcrlaf

“Pay to play” hits the big time.

Great research. I’m sharing it with friends around the country.


20 posted on 10/14/2009 7:50:52 PM PDT by EternalVigilance (Darkness has no response to light, except to flee.)
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