Notice2021-24488
2021 Draft List of Critical Minerals
Primary source
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Published
November 9, 2021
Issuing agencies
Interior DepartmentGeological Survey
Abstract
The United States remains heavily dependent on imports of certain mineral commodities that are vital to the Nation's economic and national security interests. This dependency has the potential to create strategic vulnerabilities arising from adverse foreign actions, pandemics, natural disasters, or other events that can disrupt the supply of critical minerals. The Department of the Interior (DOI) published a list of 35 critical minerals \1\ or mineral groups on May 18, 2018, in response to Executive Order 13817--A Federal Strategy to Ensure Secure and Reliable Supplies of Critical Minerals. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 86 Issue 214 (Tuesday, November 9, 2021)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 214 (Tuesday, November 9, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 62199-62203]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2021-24488]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Geological Survey
[GX22GS00EMMA900]
2021 Draft List of Critical Minerals
AGENCY: U.S. Geological Survey, Department of the Interior.
ACTION: Notice of opportunity for public comment.
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SUMMARY: The United States remains heavily dependent on imports of
certain mineral commodities that are vital to the Nation's economic and
national security interests. This dependency has the potential to
create strategic vulnerabilities arising from adverse foreign actions,
pandemics, natural disasters, or other events that can disrupt the
supply of critical minerals. The Department of the Interior (DOI)
[[Page 62200]]
published a list of 35 critical minerals \1\ or mineral groups on May
18, 2018, in response to Executive Order 13817--A Federal Strategy to
Ensure Secure and Reliable Supplies of Critical Minerals.
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\1\ Final Critical Minerals List 2018 <a href="https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2018/05/18/2018-10667/final-list-of-critical-minerals-2018">https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2018/05/18/2018-10667/final-list-of-critical-minerals-2018</a>.
DATES: To ensure consideration, written comments must be submitted
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before December 9, 2021.
ADDRESSES: You may submit written comments online at <a href="http://www.regulations.gov">http://www.regulations.gov</a> by entering ``DOI-2021-xxxx'' in the Search bar and
clicking ``Search,'' or by mail to Draft List of Critical Minerals, MS-
102, U.S. Geological Survey, 12201 Sunrise Valley Dr., Reston, VA
20192.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: James Mosley, (703) 648-6312,
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#345e595b4758514d74414753471a535b42"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="6c0601031f0009152c191f0b1f420b031a">[email protected]</span></a>. Persons who use a telecommunications device for the
deaf (TDD) may call the Federal Relay Service (FRS) at 1-800-877-8339
to contact Mr. Mosley during normal business hours. The FRS is
available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, to leave a message or question
with this individual. You will receive a reply during normal business
hours. Normal business hours are 9:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., Monday through
Friday, except for Federal holidays.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pursuant to Section 7002 (``Mineral
Security'') of Title VII (``Critical Minerals'') of the Energy Act of
2020 (The Energy Act) (Pub. L. 116-260, December 27, 2020, 116th
Cong.),\2\ the Secretary of the Interior (The Secretary), acting
through the Director of the U.S. Geological Survey, and in consultation
with the Secretaries of Defense, Commerce, Agriculture, and Energy and
the United States Trade Representative, is to ``publish in the Federal
Register for public comment--(A) a description of the draft methodology
used to identify a draft list of critical minerals; (B) a draft list of
minerals, elements, substances, and materials that qualify as critical
minerals; and (C) a draft list of critical minerals recovered as
byproducts and their host minerals.'' Under the Energy Act, Sec. 7002
(c)(5)(A) the methodology and list shall be reviewed at least every 3
years.
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\2\ Energy Act of 2020 (Division Z of the Consolidated
Appropriations Act, 2021): <a href="https://rules.house.gov/sites/democrats.rules.house.gov/files/BILLS-116HR133SA-RCP-116-68.pdf">https://rules.house.gov/sites/democrats.rules.house.gov/files/BILLS-116HR133SA-RCP-116-68.pdf</a>.
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On behalf of the Secretary, the Associate Director for Natural
Hazards exercising the authority of the Director of the U.S. Geological
Survey presents here a draft list of 50 mineral commodities proposed
for inclusion on the 2021 list of critical minerals: Aluminum,
antimony, arsenic, barite, beryllium, bismuth, cerium, cesium,
chromium, cobalt, dysprosium, erbium, europium, fluorspar, gadolinium,
gallium, germanium, graphite, hafnium, holmium, indium, iridium,
lanthanum, lithium, lutetium, magnesium, manganese, neodymium, nickel,
niobium, palladium, platinum, praseodymium, rhodium, rubidium,
ruthenium, samarium, scandium, tantalum, tellurium, terbium, thulium,
tin, titanium, tungsten, vanadium, ytterbium, yttrium, zinc, and
zirconium.
Much of the increase in the number of mineral commodities, from 35
commodities and groups on the final 2018 list to 50 commodities on the
2021 draft list, is the result of splitting the rare earth elements and
platinum group elements into individual entries rather than including
them as mineral groups. In addition, the 2021 draft list adds nickel
and zinc and removes helium, potash, rhenium, and strontium. The Energy
Act of 2020 explicitly excluded fuel minerals from the definition of a
critical mineral and the Mining and Mineral Policy Act of 1970 \3\
formally defined uranium as a mineral fuel, so uranium was not
evaluated for inclusion on the 2021 draft list of critical minerals.
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\3\ Mining and Minerals Policy Act of 1970 <a href="https://openei.org/wiki/Mining_and_Minerals_Policy_Act_of_1970">https://openei.org/wiki/Mining_and_Minerals_Policy_Act_of_1970</a>.
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Minerals were included on the 2021 draft list of critical minerals
based on three evaluations: (1) A quantitative evaluation wherever
sufficient data were available, (2) a semi-quantitative evaluation of
whether the supply chain had a single point of failure, and (3) a
qualitative evaluation when other evaluations were not possible. The
report \4\ describing the methodology and the technical input from the
U.S. Geological Survey may be found at the following link: <a href="https://doi.org/10.3133/ofr20211045">https://doi.org/10.3133/ofr20211045</a> and further details are summarized in the
supplementary information section below. The U.S. Geological Survey
seeks comments on the make-up of the draft list and the rationale
associated with potential additions or subtractions to the draft list
as described in the methodology report.
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\4\ Nassar, N.T., and Fortier, S.M., 2021, Methodology and
technical input for the 2021 review and revision of the U.S.
Critical Minerals List: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report
2021-1045, 31 p., <a href="https://doi.org/10.3133/ofr20211045">https://doi.org/10.3133/ofr20211045</a>.
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The Energy Act of 2020, Section 7002(c)(4)(A), defined critical
minerals as those which:
(i) ``are essential to the economic or national security of the
United States;
(ii) the supply chain of which is vulnerable to disruption
(including restrictions associated with foreign political risk, abrupt
demand growth, military conflict, violent unrest, anti-competitive or
protectionist behaviors, and other risks through-out the supply chain);
and
(iii) serve an essential function in the manufacturing of a product
(including energy technology-, defense-, currency-, agriculture-,
consumer electronics-, and healthcare-related applications), the
absence of which would have significant consequences for the economic
or national security of the United States.''
Section 7002(a)(3)(B) further defined the term by stating that
``The term ``critical mineral'' does not include--
(i) fuel minerals;
(ii) water, ice, or snow;
(iii) common varieties of sand, gravel, stone, pumice, cinders, and
clay.''
The Mining and Minerals Policy Act of 1970, 30 U.S.C. 21(a),
defined ``mineral fuels'' as ``including oil, gas, coal, oil shale and
uranium''. Based on these definitions, uranium was not evaluated for
inclusion on the 2021 draft list of critical minerals.
The U.S. Government and other organizations may also use other
definitions and rely on other criteria to identify a material or
mineral as ``critical'' or otherwise important. This list is not
intended to replace related terms and definitions of materials that are
deemed strategic, critical or otherwise important (such as definitions
related to the National Defense Stockpile, Specialty Materials, and
Militarily Critical Materials). In addition, there are many minerals
not listed on the critical minerals list that are important to the U.S.
economy. These materials are not considered critical as defined by the
Energy Act because the U.S. largely meets its needs for these through
domestic mining and processing and thus a supply disruption is
considered unlikely.
The 2021 draft list of critical minerals is based on a methodology
developed over several years with leadership by the U.S. Geological
Survey and interagency input coordinated by the White House Office of
Science and Technology Policy's National Science and Technology Council
(NSTC) Critical Minerals Subcommittee. The 2021 update to the
methodology was published by the U.S. Geological Survey in 2021
(<a href="https://doi.org/10.3133/ofr20211045">https://doi.org/10.3133/ofr20211045</a>) and includes three evaluations:
(1) A quantitative evaluation wherever sufficient data were available,
(2) a semi-quantitative evaluation of whether the supply chain
[[Page 62201]]
had a single point of failure, and (3) a qualitative evaluation when
other evaluations were not possible. The quantitative evaluation is an
enhancement of the NSTC methodology published in 2018 (<a href="https://doi.org/10.3133/ofr20181021">https://doi.org/10.3133/ofr20181021</a>) and used to develop the 2018 list of critical
minerals. The 2021 quantitative evaluation uses (A) a net import
reliance indicator of the dependence of the U.S. manufacturing sector
on foreign supplies, (B) an enhanced production concentration indicator
which focuses on production concentration outside of the United States,
(C) weights for each producing country's production contribution by its
ability or willingness to continue to supply the United States, and
converts the 2018 methodology's qualitative evaluation of economic
importance into a quantitative evaluation of economic vulnerability for
the U.S. manufacturing sector. Further details on the underlying
rationale and the specific approach, data sources, and assumptions used
to calculate each component of the supply risk metrics are described in
the references cited in this notice.
Table 1 shows the result of the review of the list of critical
minerals for 2021, ranked in order of decreasing supply chain risk when
a quantitative evaluation was possible. The table columns indicate
whether each mineral commodity recommended for inclusion on the 2021
draft list of critical minerals, the basis for the recommendation
(quantitative evaluation, single point of failure, or qualitative
evaluation), whether the commodity was included in on the 2018 final
list of critical minerals, and whether it is produced primarily as a
byproduct of another mineral commodity. Of the sixty-six mineral
commodities listed in Table 1, fifty-four (82% of the minerals
considered) could be evaluated using the quantitative NSTC methodology.
This includes mineral commodities that are recommended for inclusion on
the list based on a single point of supply chain failure, as
applicable, even if the commodity did not meet the quantitative
threshold cutoff. See methodology references for further details.
Table 1--Summary of Evaluation of Mineral Commodities for the 2021 List of Critical Minerals
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Highest to lowest supply Basis for
chain risk, based on Mineral commodity Included on draft 2021 list of recommended On 2018 list of Predominantly recovered as
quantitative evaluation \5\ critical minerals? inclusion critical minerals? byproduct? \6\
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1............................ Gallium........... Yes........................... Quantitative Yes................... Yes.
evaluation.
2............................ Niobium........... Yes........................... Quantitative Yes................... No.
evaluation.
3............................ Cobalt............ Yes........................... Quantitative Yes................... Yes.
evaluation.
4............................ Neodymium......... Yes........................... Quantitative Yes................... Yes.
evaluation.
5............................ Ruthenium......... Yes........................... Quantitative Yes................... Yes.
evaluation.
6............................ Rhodium........... Yes........................... Quantitative Yes................... Yes.
evaluation.
7............................ Dysprosium........ Yes........................... Quantitative Yes................... Yes.
evaluation.
8............................ Aluminum.......... Yes........................... Quantitative Yes................... No.
evaluation.
9............................ Fluorspar......... Yes........................... Quantitative Yes................... No.
evaluation.
10........................... Platinum.......... Yes........................... Quantitative Yes................... No.
evaluation.
11........................... Iridium........... Yes........................... Quantitative Yes................... Yes.
evaluation.
12........................... Praseodymium...... Yes........................... Quantitative Yes................... Yes.
evaluation.
13........................... Cerium............ Yes........................... Quantitative Yes................... Yes.
evaluation.
14........................... Lanthanum......... Yes........................... Quantitative Yes................... Yes.
evaluation.
15........................... Bismuth........... Yes........................... Quantitative Yes................... Yes.
evaluation.
16........................... Yttrium........... Yes........................... Quantitative Yes................... Yes.
evaluation.
17........................... Antimony.......... Yes........................... Quantitative Yes................... Yes.
evaluation.
18........................... Tantalum.......... Yes........................... Quantitative Yes................... No.
evaluation.
19........................... Hafnium........... Yes........................... Quantitative Yes................... Yes.
evaluation.
20........................... Tungsten.......... Yes........................... Quantitative Yes................... No.
evaluation.
21........................... Vanadium.......... Yes........................... Quantitative Yes................... Yes.
evaluation.
22........................... Tin............... Yes........................... Quantitative Yes................... No.
evaluation.
23........................... Magnesium......... Yes........................... Quantitative Yes................... No.
evaluation.
24........................... Germanium......... Yes........................... Quantitative Yes................... Yes.
evaluation.
25........................... Palladium......... Yes........................... Quantitative Yes................... Yes.
evaluation.
26........................... Titanium.......... Yes........................... Quantitative Yes................... No.
evaluation.
27........................... Zinc.............. Yes........................... Quantitative No.................... No.
evaluation.
28........................... Graphite.......... Yes........................... Quantitative Yes................... No.
evaluation.
29........................... Chromium.......... Yes........................... Quantitative Yes................... No.
evaluation.
30........................... Arsenic........... Yes........................... Quantitative Yes................... Yes.
evaluation.
31........................... Barite............ Yes........................... Quantitative Yes................... No.
evaluation.
32........................... Indium............ Yes........................... Quantitative Yes................... Yes.
evaluation.
33........................... Samarium.......... Yes........................... Quantitative Yes................... Yes.
evaluation.
34........................... Manganese......... Yes........................... Quantitative Yes................... No.
evaluation.
35........................... Lithium........... Yes........................... Quantitative Yes................... No.
evaluation.
36........................... Tellurium......... Yes........................... Quantitative Yes................... Yes.
evaluation.
37........................... Lead.............. No............................ Not applicable... No.................... No.
38........................... Potash............ No............................ Not applicable... Yes................... No.
39........................... Strontium......... No............................ Not applicable... Yes................... No.
40........................... Rhenium........... No............................ Not applicable... Yes................... Yes.
41........................... Nickel............ Yes........................... Single point of No.................... No.
failure.
42........................... Copper............ No............................ Not applicable... No.................... No.
43........................... Beryllium......... Yes........................... Single point of Yes................... No.
failure.
44........................... Feldspar.......... No............................ Not applicable... No.................... No.
45........................... Phosphate......... No............................ Not applicable... No.................... No.
46........................... Silver............ No............................ Not applicable... No.................... Yes.
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47........................... Mica.............. No............................ Not applicable... No.................... No.
48........................... Selenium.......... No............................ Not applicable... No.................... Yes.
49........................... Cadmium........... No............................ Not applicable... No.................... Yes.
50........................... Zirconium......... Yes........................... Single point of Yes................... Yes.
failure.
51........................... Molybdenum........ No............................ Not applicable... No.................... No.
52........................... Gold.............. No............................ Not applicable... No.................... No.
53........................... Helium............ No............................ Not applicable... Yes................... Yes.
54........................... Iron ore.......... No............................ Not applicable... No.................... No.
(\7\)........................ Cesium............ Yes........................... Qualitative Yes................... Yes.
evaluation.
(\8\)........................ Erbium............ Yes........................... Qualitative Yes................... Yes.
evaluation.
(\8\)........................ Europium.......... Yes........................... Qualitative Yes................... Yes.
evaluation.
(\8\)........................ Gadolinium........ Yes........................... Qualitative Yes................... Yes.
evaluation.
(\8\)........................ Holmium........... Yes........................... Qualitative Yes................... Yes.
evaluation.
(\8\)........................ Lutetium.......... Yes........................... Qualitative Yes................... Yes.
evaluation.
(\8\)........................ Rubidium.......... Yes........................... Qualitative Yes................... Yes.
evaluation.
(\8\)........................ Scandium.......... Yes........................... Qualitative Yes................... Yes.
evaluation.
(\8\)........................ Terbium........... Yes........................... Qualitative Yes................... Yes.
evaluation.
(\8\)........................ Thulium........... Yes........................... Qualitative Yes................... Yes.
evaluation.
(\8\)........................ Uranium........... Not evaluated................. Not applicable... Yes................... No.
(\8\)........................ Ytterbium......... Yes........................... Qualitative Yes................... Yes.
evaluation.
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Table 1 includes 11 mineral commodities that are not recommended
for inclusion on the 2021 list of critical minerals. These mineral
commodities did not meet the NSTC quantitative evaluation criteria,
were determined not to have a single point of failure and were not
included on the 2018 list of critical minerals. These eleven
commodities (17% of the minerals evaluated) are: Lead, copper,
feldspar, phosphate, silver, mica, selenium, cadmium, molybdenum, gold,
and iron ore, ranked in order of their overall supply chain risk. While
several of these are essential mineral commodities, their supply chain
vulnerability is mitigated by domestic production, lack of import
dependence, and diverse, secure sources of supply.
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\5\ Ranked in order from highest to lowest risk based on a
recency-weighted mean of the commodities' overall supply risk
scores. See the published methodology (<a href="https://doi.org/10.3133/ofr20211045">https://doi.org/10.3133/ofr20211045</a>) for further details.
\6\ Most mineral commodities are recovered as byproducts to some
degree, but the share of primary production as a byproduct for the
mineral commodities that are not identified as byproducts in the
table is typically small. Rare earth elements (REEs) are mined both
as byproducts of other mineral commodities (for example, iron ore or
heavy-mineral sands) and as the main product. Where REEs are mined
as the main product, the individual REEs are either byproducts or
coproducts of each other. For simplicity, all REEs are labeled in
the table as having been produced mostly as byproducts. Byproduct
status can and does change, although notable changes over short
periods of time are rare.
\7\ Commodities that were not evaluated using the quantitative
evaluation are not given a rank and are ordered alphabetically.
\8\ USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2021 <a href="https://pubs.usgs.gov/periodicals/mcs2021/mcs2021.pdf">https://pubs.usgs.gov/periodicals/mcs2021/mcs2021.pdf</a>.
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Mineral commodities that did not meet the criteria for the NSTC
quantitative evaluation, but that have an identified single point of
supply chain failure and an essential economic function, are
recommended for inclusion on the 2021 list of critical minerals
regardless of whether the commodities in question were on the 2018
list. Examples are beryllium and zirconium, which were on the 2018
list, and nickel, which was not. Increasing demand for nickel as a
component for producing cathodes for lithium-ion batteries, and the
limited mining, smelting, and refinery capacity in the United States
make a compelling case for inclusion.
Zinc, which was not on the 2018 list of critical minerals, was
above the quantitative threshold for inclusion on the 2021 draft list
of critical minerals due to the increasing concentration of mine and
smelter capacities globally and the continued refinement and
development of the quantitative evaluation criteria.
Potash, rhenium, and strontium were on the 2018 list of critical
minerals but do not meet the quantitative threshold and do not have a
single point of failure. Potash, strontium, and rhenium have supply
risk scores just below the quantitative threshold. This highlights the
fact that the metrics developed with this methodology are best viewed
as a continuum of supply risk rather than an as indication that supply
risk does not exist for commodities below the quantitative cutoff.
These three commodities all had very high trade exposure but low
disruption potential. This reflects the fact that, while the United
States was highly net import reliant for all three commodities, the
production of these minerals was either not highly concentrated or was
concentrated in countries considered to be reliable trade partners. Any
changes in the supply chain dynamics of these commodities will be
closely monitored, but none of the three is recommended for inclusion
on the 2021 draft list of critical minerals.
Helium (like potash, rhenium, and strontium) was on the 2018 list
of critical minerals but does not meet the quantitative threshold nor
have a single point of failure. The United States is the world's
leading producer and a net exporter of helium. Helium's trade exposure
score was thus 0 and, in turn, its supply risk score was 0. Crude
helium was produced in more than a dozen plants across several U.S.
States, and several other plants produced grade-A Helium. Therefore,
helium does not qualify for inclusion on the list based on the single
point of failure criterion. Helium production outside the United States
was concentrated in Qatar and Algeria. Both countries, as well as
Canada, Russia, and Tanzania, are poised to increase their production
as additional capacity becomes available in the near term. The Helium
Stewardship Act of 2013-directed closure of the Federally managed
helium reserve by the Bureau of Land Management has the potential to
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increase uncertainty in the market. The global shift from conventional
natural gas toward shale gas, which lacks recoverable quantities of
helium, also has the potential to reduce the supply of helium,
especially for the United States. While these factors make helium a
commodity that bears watching, it is not recommended for inclusion on
the 2021 draft list of critical minerals.
There were insufficient data to quantitatively evaluate several
commodities that were on the 2018 list of critical minerals: Cesium,
rubidium, scandium, and several REEs (europium, gadolinium, terbium,
holmium, erbium, thulium, ytterbium, and lutetium). The United States
has been completely net import reliant for all these commodities for
many years.\8\ No specific global production data were available for
these commodities; however, general information suggests that
production for each of these commodities is highly concentrated in a
few countries. Scandium was produced mainly as a byproduct in China,
Kazakhstan, the Philippines, Russia, and Ukraine. Cesium and rubidium
had been produced in Australia, Canada, China, Namibia, and Zimbabwe;
however, it is thought that all cesium and rubidium mine production
outside of China has either ceased in recent years or come under
control of Chinese companies. The REEs that were not analyzed because
of the lack of data (namely europium, gadolinium, terbium, holmium,
erbium, thulium, ytterbium, and lutetium) were all heavy REEs that were
produced only or predominantly in China. Based on this qualitative
evaluation, none of these commodities are recommended for removal from
the list of critical minerals.
Mineral criticality is not static, but changes over time. This
analysis represents the most recent available data for non-fuel mineral
commodities and the current state of the methodology for evaluation of
criticality.
Please submit written comments on this draft list by December 9,
2021 to facilitate consideration. In particular, the U.S. Geological
Survey is interested in comments addressing the following topics: The
make-up of the draft list and the rationale associated with potential
additions or subtractions to the draft list. Before including your
address, phone number, email address, or other personally identifiable
information (PII) in your comment, you should be aware that your entire
comment, including your PII, may be made publicly available at any
time. While you can ask us in your comment to withhold your PII from
public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.
Authority: E.O. 13817, 82 FR 60835 (December 26, 2017) and The
Energy Act of 2020, Section 7002 of Title VII (December 27, 2020).
Dated: November 4, 2021.
James D. Applegate,
Associate Director for Natural Hazards, Exercising the Delegated
Authority of the Director, U.S. Geological Survey.
[FR Doc. 2021-24488 Filed 11-8-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4334-63-P
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