Cotton bill would fast-track US mining to counter China’s mineral dominance

FIRST ON FOX: A Senate Republican wants to give the U.S. a leg up in its race against China and to ween the nation off of its reliance on imports of key raw materials needed for weapons systems.

Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., would like to fast-track the harvesting of raw materials in the U.S. needed for the nation’s defensive capabilities, and plans to blow through federal and judicial red tape to do it.

Cotton plans to introduce legislation that would allow critical mineral mining projects deemed necessary to bolster the nation’s military and defensive readiness by Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth to skirt environmental laws and possible blockages by the courts.

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His bill is designed to give the U.S. an edge against China, the world’s largest producer of critical minerals like cobalt, lithium, graphite and other rare earth minerals used in weapons systems, electric vehicles and consumer electronics.

Currently, China produces roughly 60% of the world’s critical mineral supply, and processes up to 90%.

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“Current environmental laws put our readiness to counter Communist China at risk and waste taxpayer dollars on projects that stall out and die on the vine,” Cotton said in a statement to Fox News Digital. “This bill will create jobs, better arm and prepare our soldiers, and spend taxpayer dollars more efficiently.”

Cotton’s bill, dubbed the Necessary Environmental Exemptions for Defense Act, would create a waiver for mining activities and projects related to countering China and to allow the Pentagon to “operate with maximum agility and efficiency to ensure it is prepared to deter and, if necessary, fight and win a conflict with the Chinese Communist Party,” according to bill text first obtained by Fox News Digital.

Among the regulations and environmental review standards that could be skirted with the waiver are the National Environmental Policy Act, Endangered Species Act, Marine Mammal Protection Act and Federal Water Pollution Control Act.

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Cotton argued in his legislation that the aforementioned regulations “frequently and unnecessarily delay” the preparedness of the military without “substantial benefit to the environment or protected species,” and that time is of the essence when it comes to national defense.

The projects that would fall under the umbrella of the regulation exemption include testing and production and deployment of technologies, systems or equipment and the construction, maintenance, expansion, or repair of facilities or Defense Department infrastructure, among others.

It would also prevent projects from being snarled in the courts, as long as the initiative is deemed necessary for military preparedness by the Secretary of Defense.

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The bill fits into the White House’s broader plan to jump-start critical mineral mining in the country, be it through executive action, a bid to buy Greenland, a minerals agreement with Ukraine, or opening up more offshore mining in the Gulf of America.

It also comes after President Donald Trump reached a deal with Chinese President Xi Jinping to resume trade of critical minerals after shipments were stopped earlier this year following the White House’s slew of tariffs against China and other countries.