Posted on 12/22/2017 9:00:22 AM PST by Hamiltonian
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, following President Donald J. Trump's executive order to break America's dependence on foreign minerals, U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke signed a secretarial order directing the initial steps to producing the first nationwide geological and topographical survey of the United States in modern history. The order also directs Interior bureaus to begin work on identifying immediate domestic sources for critical minerals.
"Right now the United States is almost completely reliant on foreign adversaries and competitors for many of the minerals that are deemed critical for our national and economic security. As both a former military commander and geologist, I know the risk this presents to our nation," said Secretary Ryan Zinke. "The problem is we can't fix the problem if we don't know where the minerals are within our own borders. Other nations are far ahead of us with mapping of their mineral resources, leading to private sector investment overseas rather than right here at home. Drafting a complete topographical and geographic survey of the United States is exactly the kind of task the USGS was created to do."
(Excerpt) Read more at doi.gov ...
I think the United States has an incredible supply of minerals. Much of them can’t be mined because they are national parks or special environmental set-asides. Instead, we get our minerals from poor third world countries by strip mining and leaving behind a blasted landscape with no life.
I agree. This is exactly how a government is supposed to be run. I am so glad I didn’t know were are so currently dependent on other countries for our well being. We have been JACKED AROUND. And we, the people out here, didn’t have sense enough to ask questions.
My Dad asked questions back in 1950’s. He was a Gold Mining Engineer, went to college to do that. He wanted a job doing that job in the 50’s and even then there were no gold mining jobs. I doubt very much the US is without gold reserves still in the ground.
Then we have crooks in our own government selling 20-30% of our Uranium resources and who were responsible for making us dependent on other countries for our other resouces? They should all be hung as traitors.
What else has been going on in a similar ilk? I want to know!
I’m finding it difficult to believe that this would represent the first ever survey “in modern times” of critical rare earth minerals. This has been a known issue for a long time. At one time the federal government had stockpiles of all sorts of things - including mohair, helium, and crystals - for crystal radios! Chrome and Vanadium are well known, but others are necessary for aerospace applications, the alloys for rocket engines &c. Seems to me there was one particular mine in NW Montana that was the sole US source for one of the minerals, and the greenies succeeded in shutting it down.
During World War II the US targeted ball bearing plants from the air in Nazi Germany. Without bearings - nothing rolls, not for very long. The same principle applies with respect to certain minerals. Our adversaries know what they are doing.
“were”should have been we’re. I am sorry.
It seems my computer besides having lost Spell Check is not algorhythiming my words into the simplest component meaning and almost necessarily making the word nonsensical.
RARE EARTH ELEMENT PROSPECTS AND OCCURRENCES IN UTAH
"The Calf Canyon deposit is about 6 mi due south of Escalante and the Dave Canyon deposit adjoins it to the south. Crudely estimated average grades from surface rock chip samples for these deposits run from about 7 to 15.8% ZrO2 and 11.85 to 20.9% TiO2 (Doelling, 1975; Gloyn and others, 1997). A bulk sample of this deposit had grades of 12.4% ZrO2, 18.8% TiO2, and 14.7% Fe (Dow and Batty, 1961). Two channel samples of the deposit by Doelling (1975) ran 0.09 and 0.15% Th equivalent. Gloyn and others (1997) suggest the Calf Canyon deposit may host over 300,000 short tons of Ti-Zr ore. No REE values are available for the Straight Cliffs TiZr deposits and they all lie within the Grand Staircase - Escalante National Monument."
Not the “first ever”, IIRC.
LOOK UP the records of CLAIMS in every state. Some of them go back over 150 years. Also —review old assay records.
Those assay locations do exist. Not just a part of Western Movies !!!
That facility in Missouri needs to be reopened immediately.
Interesting detail in #26.
Besides this. You have no Idea how MAGA this is getting, I am stunned, every day win, after win after freakin win.
You all have hit on this, we are buying all this "stuff" from the ChiCom's and we got it here it is time to get it, and these are strategic assets. I once had a private conservation w/ a freeper that noted the reason we don't have small gas turbines in things like our cars ( I think it is the Reynolds Number issue and "choking" because of it but let that go ) is that rich liberals had already bought up the rare mineral lands and were sitting on them, waiting biding their time.
I also have an old friend I need to have lunch with it has been too long, a bit of a conspiratorial guy. He noted we have had a false economy since I think Ike as we stopped counting our raw materials ( maybe more so like timber copper, iron etc ) as part of our wealth and viewing as a strategic asset. I am sure this would warm his heart.
I am stunned, this was done after most of the umpa-loopa's in the House and Senate went home is my guess. They will be left goob-smacked.
Titanium:
-Landing gear, springs, rotors (helicopter), fittings, and attachments
-Structural components for airplanes, satellites, and spacecraft
-Gas turbine engines
Zirconium:
-Space vehicles and parts
-Alloys for naval applications
“... the federal government had stockpiles of all sorts of things ...”
-
Similar thinking led to the creation of our “national forests”
for the availability of wood to use in shipbuilding.
“...I find it astounding that such rudimentary national security issues such as this and our vulnerability to EMP attack have been ignored for so long....”
I don’t. Whenever we have an “enemy combatant” sitting in the Oval Office for 8 long years, nothing surprises me as to the destruction the POS did. He belongs in GITMO...sharing a cell with Hitlery....forever.
For the “low-hanging fruit”, all he has to do is go back over the past administration’s 8 years of destruction and see what mineral-producers were shut down and/or sold. Uranium and lead are the first two that come to mind. odongo shut downour last lead smelter by crushing them with EPA regulations. Hitlery sold a big pile of our uranium to our potential enemies for “donations” to their thievery foundation. Just follow these trails and it will be an enlightenment to their eyes.
One problem with operations that were shut down happens when the equipment is sent overseas or scrapped.
“...One problem with operations that were shut down happens when the equipment is sent overseas or scrapped....’
Yep, you are right on and correct. This is not going to rectified over night. It’s gonna take some time and some government interaction, corp. tax breaks, etc. to get this ship back upright again.
So this news from a former military man and geologist Zinke is stunning. It means he has every intention of doing more, e.g., taking back the gift to Indonesia, the Grand Escalante National Park and allowing coal mining or selling it back to capitalists.
If Trump is President for 8 years, can you imagine the resurgence of fundamental manufacturing in this country? My only concern is whether the USGS has any competent, honest, apolitical scientists left?
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