system to help provide a resilient domestic supply chain. The United States defines critical minerals as those essential to eco- nomic and national security and have a supply chain vulnerable to disruption. The United States was fully reliant on foreign sources for 12 of the 50 min- erals on the U.S. Geological Survey’s 2023 Mineral Commodity Summary. The nation relied on foreign sources for more than 50% of its needs of 31 other critical minerals on that list. The USGS list includes several minerals that exist in Alaska: an- timony, bismuth, cobalt, graphite, lithium, nickel, tellurium, tin, tung- sten, copper and platinum. The Alaska Critical Mineral Accel- erator will focus on the need for more exploration and discovery, improved mineral and metal characterization, more efficient extraction and reme - diation, lower-cost solutions, im- proved minerals and metal recovery from existing mine waste, and talent and workforce training for Alaskans. “A major goal is to not only improve the way mining is done but also to improve the perceptions around resource extraction by using
The Alaska Critical Mineral Accelerator will focus on the need for more exploration and discovery, improved mineral and metal characterization, more efficient extraction and remediation, lower-cost solutions, improved minerals and metal recovery from existing mine waste, and talent and workforce training for Alaskans.
novel lower-impact techniques,” Munk said. The Regional Innovation Engines program aims to accelerate technol- ogy development, address societal challenges and stimulate economic growth, particularly in regions that have not fully participated in tech- nology booms. The program’s first awards were made in January 2024. Congress established and funded the program within the National Sci- ence Foundation in 2022. The program
provides up to 10 years of funding per proposal, with the option to get two years of funding for planning. Additional funding for the pro- gram, including funding for the cur- rent proposals, is contingent on Con- gress and the White House providing enough money to the NSF to sustain it. Current presidential executive orders support increasing domestic critical minerals production.
— Rod Boyce, UAF Geophysical Institute
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www.AlaskaMiners.org
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