The world is becoming increasingly volatile, making it clear that the United States must quickly secure our supply chains and eliminate dependence on foreign adversaries like the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). As the Chairman of the House Energy and Mineral Resources Subcommittee, I believe we can no longer tolerate the CCP’s tight grip over the critical minerals needed for American fighter jets, cellphones, lifesaving medical devices, and mandated electric vehicle fleets, along with so many products Americans use daily.
We should all be concerned that the CCP controls the global supply chain for the development, processing, and manufacturing of critical minerals. China does not have our best interests at heart, and every American must consider the consequences should the CCP decide to deny us these much-needed resources. Just last year, Beijing reminded us of our dangerous predicament by setting export restrictions on two minerals used in high-performance chips.
Chinese dominance over the critical minerals supply chain threatens our economic and national security, but it also poses a moral dilemma. Specifically, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) supplies around 70% of the global cobalt supply, and China controls 15 of the DRC’s 19 industrial mines, where child slave laborers work under dangerous and inhumane conditions. China also holds the first-place title as the world’s top polluter.
Despite our reliance on China for these resources, the Biden Administration has not supported American miners who domestically source these critical minerals under the strongest environmental and labor standards in the world. From Alaska to Arizona, the Biden Administration has slowed and stopped important domestic mining projects.
One example is the decision to cancel two long-held mineral leases and declare a mining ban in Northern Minnesota. As the Representative of this area, I know this is a grave mistake.
Northern Minnesota is home to the Duluth Complex, the largest untapped copper-nickel deposit in the world. Once developed, this deposit will constitute 95% of U.S. nickel reserves, 88% of U.S. cobalt reserves, 75% of U.S. platinum-group reserves, and one-third of U.S. copper reserves. By denying America and the world this abundance of mineral wealth, the Administration has made our nation increasingly more vulnerable while denying my constituents the good-paying jobs and revenue that accompanies mining projects of this magnitude.
Luckily, a bipartisan group in the House recently passed my Superior National Forest Restoration Act, legislation that will restore these mineral leases and reverse President Biden’s mining ban. With the bill’s passage, Minnesota’s miners are one step closer to developing the Duluth Complex and loosening China’s chokehold over the critical minerals supply chain.
We still have a long way to go. It is clear that if we are ever to remove ourselves from Chinese control, we will need to elect leaders who will allow good domestic mining projects to move forward. Now more than ever, our nation needs leaders with an allegiance to what is best for all of America and our allies.
Pete Stauber is serving his third term as the Representative for Minnesota’s 8th congressional district. He is a member of the House Natural Resources Committee and chairs the Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources.
