Hi All,

Next week Chairs and Ranking Member of the Senate Energy & Natural Resources Committee are advancing their bill S. 1317 the American Mineral Security Act in committee. This bill will essentially exempt all hardrock mining projects from NEPA. They will be voting on it next Tuesday 7/16!

We would like to ask your organizations to join us in opposing this “critical minerals” bill by signing the letter (below) with this form.

We know this is a quick turnaround, but we need you to sign by Noon ET on Monday as the letter will be sent up on Monday afternoon.

Thank you and please reach out with any questions.

Cheers,

Blaine Miller-McFeeley

Senior Legislative Representative

Earthjustice

500 New Jersey Ave., NW Ste. 700

Washington, DC 20001

(202) 745-5225

facebook.com/earthjustice

twitter.com/earthjustice

Dear Chair Murkowski, Ranking Member Manchin, and Members of the Senate Committee on Energy & Natural Resources:

On behalf of our millions of members, supporters, and mining-affected communities across the nation, we urge you to oppose S. 1317 the American Mineral Security Act.

Mining Poses Unique Environmental Problems Not Suited for Reduced Permitting

S. 1317 directs the Interior Department to develop a series of mine permitting metrics, measure performance against those metrics, and report to Congress. Generally, transparency and government efficiency are worthy policy goals; however, this bill adds the entire hardrock mining sector to a permitting scheme wholly unfit for the scale of environmental review needed for large-scale hardrock mining operations. The Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act (FAST-41) permitting process, intended for surface infrastructure projects, does not adequately provide for meaningful tribal consultation, community outreach, or environmental review.

Mines are unique, highly variable, and pose environmental issues that can and rightfully take significant time to analyze. Yet, this bill effectively limits public comment periods on a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) to 60 days, unless the permit applicant otherwise agrees (See FAST Act,  42 USC 4370m-4).  Many such mining documents span hundreds or thousands of pages. Mines affect all kinds of people, including those who live in remote areas or rely on seasonal subsistence or employment. Often, these communities have valuable information agencies should consider and such limited comment period time frame(s) does not provide ample opportunity for full participation.

This bill poses several problems, the primary mentioned here--the development of critical minerals should not mean limiting National Environmental Policy Act review and/or reducing public input in mining decisions on public lands. While we recognize the need to expand and secure sources of the few truly strategic and critical minerals necessary to build clean energy technologies, we believe we must do so in ways that protect communities, safeguard our air and water, and protect wildlife, wildlands, and national parks.

For these reasons, we urge you to oppose S. 1317

Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely,