Trump to Consider Environmental Wavers Critical Minerals Mines
WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump will consider waiving environmental reviews for critical mineral mining projects that receive federal subsidies or are located on federal lands, according to internal documents leaked to Reuters. Should Trump move forward with the proposal, these projects would not be subject to National Environmental Policy Act reviews, and would short-cut health and environmental protections. In response, Chelsea Hodgkins, senior EV advocate with Public Citizen’s Climate Program, issued the following statement:
“Trump’s mining giveaway will be a disaster for Americans across the country. Heavily subsidized mining companies have already polluted 40% of rivers in the United States and left a toxic legacy of more than 500,000 abandoned sites nationwide.”
“As the mining industry’s role expands to provide minerals for EV, solar panels, and other renewables, now is the time to strengthen governance over the mining industry, with strong scrutiny for those who are given taxpayer dollars to build projects. We need the mining industry to be held to the highest environmental and social standards for the energy transition to benefit everyday Americans, create strong union jobs, and protect our natural resources.”
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