42 U.S.C. § 18743 — Critical minerals mining and recycling research
submitted 5 years ago by Pub. L. 117-58 to r/title-42-THE-PUBLIC-HEALTH-AND-WELFARE · 1,782 words · no verdicts yet
The Department of Energy and National Science Foundation must fund research into mining, processing, and recycling critical minerals used in energy technology. A federal subcommittee coordinates this work and identifies rules that block domestic mining. The Energy Department also runs a grant program, capped at $10 million per project, favoring recovery of minerals from waste and domestic processing.
(a) Definitions
"Critical mineral" and "critical minerals and metals" follow section 1606(a) of title 30, with "critical minerals and metals" also covering any host mineral that critical minerals come from. "Director" means the Director of the National Science Foundation ("Foundation"). "End-to-end" describes looking at the whole life of a mineral -- from mining raw material, through processing it into useful materials, building it into devices, using those devices, and finally recycling or disposing of them. "Foreign entity of concern" has essentially the same meaning as in section 18741 of this title: a foreign entity designated as a terrorist organization, on the Treasury's sanctions list, controlled by certain foreign governments, alleged to have been convicted under listed espionage or export-control laws, or determined by the Secretary* of Commerce (with Defense and intelligence officials) to be acting against U.S. national security or foreign policy. "Institution of higher education" has the meaning in section 1001 of title 20. "National Laboratory" has the meaning in section 15801 of this title. "Recycling" means turning spent materials and devices back into raw materials or reusable components. "Secondary recovery" means recovering critical minerals and metals from discarded end-use products or from waste made during metal refining and manufacturing -- including old mine waste piles, acid mine drainage sludge, or byproducts of past mining and metallurgy.
(b) Critical minerals mining and recycling research and development
To make U.S. supply chains more resilient, the Secretary, working with the Director, must award competitive grants to institutions of higher education, National Laboratories, nonprofits, or groups combining these (even with private industry) for basic research that speeds up better mining, recycling, and reclamation of critical minerals -- so the U.S. can use its own resources better and rely less on minerals prone to supply disruptions. Funded work can include: developing new mapping and mining techniques, including better extraction methods, to improve or build new critical-mineral supply chains and make mining more efficient and less harmful to the environment; improving how minerals are separated, alloyed, manufactured, or recycled to cut energy use, waste, environmental harm, and cost; researching mining and recycling technology that accounts for how minerals will eventually be used and disposed of; long-term observation of reclaimed mine sites, including changes in microbial life there; studying how artificial intelligence could help find mineral deposits, and what data that would need; studying how machine learning could detect and sort critical minerals, and what data that would need; detailed isotope studies and better geologic models; and training the next generation of mining engineers and researchers.
(c) Critical minerals interagency subcommittee
To support supply chain resilience, the Critical Minerals Subcommittee of the National Science and Technology Council must coordinate federal science and technology work to keep critical mineral supplies secure and reliable. Its jobs are to: advise the Council on U.S. critical-minerals policy, covering research on extraction and purification methods, efficient use and recycling (including reclaiming minerals from things like spent batteries), moving lab-scale technology to commercial use, the critical-minerals workforce, and private investment in publicly funded research; find new opportunities, encourage international cooperation, and help build secure mineral supply chains, including through recycling; keep information and data about critical minerals transparent; and recommend how federal agencies can better coordinate their research and development programs. Taking advisory committees' input into account, the Subcommittee may: recommend how agencies can improve mapping of the U.S. and make that data more usable, while protecting privacy and security; assess progress on recycling and reprocessing technology; study the full life cycle of critical minerals; recommend ways to access minerals through trade and investment with U.S. allies; recommend incentives for private industry to adopt new science and technology; assess and recommend fixes for workforce challenges -- an aging workforce, public misperceptions about mining, and foreign competition for talent; write and update a strategic plan to build scientific capability across the mineral supply chain, including a roadmap for research needs and coordinated efforts on diversifying sources, more efficient use, recycling, and substitutes; and report to Congress on its work. The Subcommittee must also identify and evaluate federal policies and regulations that restrict critical mineral mining.
(d) Grant program for processing of critical minerals and development of critical minerals and metals
The Secretary, with the Director, the Secretary of the Interior, and the Secretary of Commerce, must create a grant program to fund pilot projects that process or recycle critical minerals in the U.S., or that develop critical minerals and metals in the U.S. No single grant can exceed $10,000,000. The Secretary must favor projects likely to stay economically viable long-term. At least 30 percent of the total grant money awarded each year must go to projects recovering minerals from waste ("secondary recovery"). For development projects, the Secretary must prioritize ones that will process the minerals domestically. The Secretary must also make sure no funded pilot project* sends critical minerals or metals to a foreign entity of concern for processing. Congress may give the Secretary $100,000,000 for this grant program for each of fiscal years 2021 through 2024.
In this section:
The term “critical mineral” has the meaning given the term in section 1606(a) of title 30.
The term “critical minerals and metals” includes any host mineral of a critical mineral.
The term “Director” means the Director of the Foundation.
The term “end-to-end”, with respect to the integration of mining or life cycle of minerals, means the integrated approach of, or the lifecycle determined by, examining the research and developmental process from the mining of the raw minerals to its processing into useful materials, its integration into components and devices, the utilization of such devices in the end-use application to satisfy certain performance metrics, and the recycling or disposal of such devices.
The term “foreign entity of concern” means a foreign entity that is—
designated as a foreign terrorist organization by the Secretary* of State* under section 1189(a) of title 8;
included on the list of specially designated nationals and blocked persons maintained by the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the Department of the Treasury (commonly known as the SDN list);
owned by, controlled by, or subject to the jurisdiction or direction of a government of a foreign country that is a covered nation (as defined in section 2533c(d) 1 of title 10);
alleged by the Attorney General to have been involved in activities for which a conviction was obtained under—
chapter 37 of title 18 (commonly known as the “Espionage Act”);
section 951 or 1030 of title 18;
chapter 90 of title 18 (commonly known as the “Economic Espionage Act of 1996)”;
the Arms Export Control Act (22 U.S.C. 2751 et seq.);
section 224, 225, 226, 227, or 236 of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 (42 U.S.C. 2274, 2275, 2276, 2277, and 2 2284);
the Export Control Reform Act of 2018 (50 U.S.C. 4801 et seq.); or
the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.); or
determined by the Secretary of Commerce, in consultation with the Secretary of Defense and the Director of National Intelligence, to be engaged in unauthorized conduct that is detrimental to the national security or foreign policy of the United States.
The term “Foundation” means the National Science Foundation.
The term “institution of higher education” has the meaning given the term in section 1001 of title 20.
The term “National Laboratory” has the meaning given the term in section 15801 of this title.
The term “recycling” means the process of collecting and processing spent materials and devices and turning the materials and devices into raw materials or components that can be reused either partially or completely.
The term “secondary recovery” means the recovery of critical minerals and metals from discarded end-use products or from waste products produced during the metal refining and manufacturing process, including from mine waste piles, acid mine drainage sludge, or byproducts produced through legacy mining and metallurgy activities.
In order to support supply chain resiliency, the Secretary, in coordination with the Director, shall issue awards, on a competitive basis, to eligible entities described in paragraph (2) to support basic research that will accelerate innovation to advance critical minerals mining, recycling, and reclamation strategies and technologies for the purposes of—
making better use of domestic resources; and
eliminating national reliance on minerals and mineral materials that are subject to supply disruptions.
Entities eligible to receive an award under paragraph (1) are the following:
Institutions of higher education.
National Laboratories.
Nonprofit organizations.
Consortia of entities described in subparagraphs (A) through (C), including consortia that collaborate with private industry.
Activities funded by an award under this section may include—
advancing mining research and development activities to develop new mapping and mining technologies and techniques, including advanced critical mineral extraction and production—
to improve existing, or to develop new, supply chains of critical minerals; and
to yield more efficient, economical, and environmentally benign mining practices*;
advancing critical mineral processing research activities to improve separation, alloying, manufacturing, or recycling techniques and technologies that can decrease the energy intensity, waste, potential environmental impact, and costs of those activities;
advancing research and development of critical minerals mining and recycling technologies that take into account the potential end-uses and disposal of critical minerals, in order to improve end-to-end integration of mining and technological applications;
conducting long-term earth observation of reclaimed mine sites, including the study of the evolution of microbial diversity at those sites;
examining the application of artificial intelligence for geological exploration of critical minerals, including what size and diversity of data sets would be required;
examining the application of machine learning for detection and sorting of critical minerals, including what size and diversity of data sets would be required;
conducting detailed isotope studies of critical minerals and the development of more refined geologic models; or
providing training and research opportunities to undergraduate and graduate students to prepare the next generation of mining engineers and researchers.
In order to support supply chain resiliency, the Critical Minerals Subcommittee of the National Science and Technology Council (referred to in this subsection as the “Subcommittee”) shall coordinate Federal science and technology efforts to ensure secure and reliable supplies of critical minerals to the United States.
The purposes of the Subcommittee shall be—
to advise and assist the National Science and Technology Council, including the Committee on Homeland and National Security of the National Science and Technology Council, on United States policies, procedures, and plans relating to critical minerals, including—
Federal research, development, and deployment efforts to optimize methods for extractions, concentration, separation, and purification of conventional, secondary, and unconventional sources of critical minerals, including research that prioritizes end-to-end integration of mining and recycling techniques and the end-use target for critical minerals;
efficient use and reuse of critical minerals, including recycling technologies for critical minerals and the reclamation of critical minerals from components, such as spent batteries;
addressing the technology transitions between research or lab-scale mining and recycling and commercialization of these technologies;
the critical minerals workforce of the United States; and
United States private industry investments in innovation and technology transfer from federally funded science and technology;
to identify emerging opportunities, stimulate international cooperation, and foster the development of secure and reliable supply chains of critical minerals, including activities relating to the reuse of critical minerals via recycling;
to ensure the transparency of information and data related to critical minerals; and
to provide recommendations on coordination and collaboration among the research, development, and deployment programs and activities of Federal agencies to promote a secure and reliable supply of critical minerals necessary to maintain national security, economic well-being, and industrial production.
In carrying out paragraphs (1) and (2), the Subcommittee may, taking into account the findings and recommendations of relevant advisory committees—
provide recommendations on how Federal agencies may improve the topographic, geologic, and geophysical mapping of the United States and improve the discoverability, accessibility, and usability of the resulting and existing data, to the extent permitted by law and subject to appropriate limitation for purposes of privacy and security;
assess the progress toward developing critical minerals recycling and reprocessing technologies;
assess the end-to-end lifecycle of critical minerals, including for mining, usage, recycling, and end-use material and technology requirements;
examine, and provide recommendations for, options for accessing and developing critical minerals through investment and trade with allies and partners of the United States;
evaluate and provide recommendations to incentivize the development and use of advances in science and technology in the private industry;
assess the need for, and make recommendations to address, the challenges the United States critical minerals supply chain workforce faces, including—
aging and retiring personnel and faculty;
public perceptions about the nature of mining and mineral processing; and
foreign competition for United States talent;
develop, and update as necessary, a strategic plan to guide Federal programs and activities to enhance—
scientific and technical capabilities across critical mineral supply chains, including a roadmap that identifies key research and development needs and coordinates ongoing activities for source diversification, more efficient use, recycling, and substitution for critical minerals; and
cross-cutting mining science, data science techniques, materials science, manufacturing science and engineering, computational modeling, and environmental health and safety research and development; and
report to the appropriate committees of Congress on activities and findings under this subsection.
In carrying out paragraphs (1) and (2), the Subcommittee shall, taking into account the findings and recommendations of relevant advisory committees, identify and evaluate Federal policies and regulations that restrict the mining of critical minerals.
The Secretary, in consultation with the Director, the Secretary of the Interior, and the Secretary of Commerce, shall establish a grant program to finance pilot projects for—
the processing or recycling of critical minerals in the United States; or
the development of critical minerals and metals in the United States 3
A grant awarded under paragraph (1) may not exceed $10,000,000.
In awarding grants under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall give priority to projects that the Secretary determines are likely to be economically viable over the long term.
In awarding grants under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall seek to award not less than 30 percent of the total amount of grants awarded during the fiscal year for projects relating to secondary recovery of critical minerals and metals.
In awarding grants for the development of critical minerals and metals under paragraph (1)(B), the Secretary shall prioritize pilot projects that will process the critical minerals and metals domestically.
In awarding grants under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall ensure that pilot projects do not export for processing any critical minerals and metals to a foreign entity of concern.
There is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary to carry out the grant program established under paragraph (1) $100,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2021 through 2024.
Source credit: (Pub. L. 117–58, div. D, title II, § 40210, Nov. 15, 2021, 135 Stat. 978.)
- 2021Enacted · Pub. L. 117-58 · 135 Stat. 978
A history note hasn’t been published yet. The record shows enactment by Pub. L. 117-58 on 2021-11-15.
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