Why Mining Reform Demands a Role in Our Climate Response

By Emily Phillips

In July, MCC held an advocacy day in collaboration with ACC urging US Congress to support mining reform that includes mandatory consultation with affected communities, requires mining companies to clean up abandoned mines, and allows the federal government to deny projects that would cause environmental or health concerns. As MCC and ACC’s Climate Advocacy Intern, much of my role involved organizing this advocacy day, including tracing the connection between mining reform and climate change. 

Demand for minerals that are considered essential to economic or national security, known as critical minerals, is rising. The increasing demand is fueled by their use in the military industry, AI data centers, and electronics and other forms of technology. While these are all linked to climate change—data centers, consumer electronics, and the military industry all have large carbon footprints— it is the need for minerals in renewable energy infrastructure that complicates the climate response.

Despite its prominence in the current US economy, mining in the U.S. is still governed by a law passed in 1872. This law declares that mining is the “highest and best use” of public land, making it difficult for the federal government to decline mining projects that may cause harm. Consultation with Indigenous communities and cleanup of abandoned mines is limited under the current system, and the cost of cleanup often falls to taxpayers rather than mining companies.

 The legacy of this law is not pretty. Today, the outstanding cost of abandoned mine cleanup is estimated to be more than 50 billion taxpayer dollars. Fifty million gallons of polluted water flow from mines each day, and 600,000 members of Indigenous communities live within six miles of an abandoned mine. The EPA estimates that 40% of rivers and 50% of lakes in the U.S. have been contaminated by the hardrock mining industry.

In the urgency to switch to renewable energy, we must not overlook the harm caused by irresponsible or poorly regulated extraction. If our response to climate change is additional extraction, we must be aware of its impacts on marginalized communities and sensitive ecosystems already threatened by climate change. Though mining reform alone does not solve these issues, it is a crucial step in minimizing harm to people and the planet.

You have the power to act.

In the U.S. Send a message to your congressional representatives calling for responsible mining reform that includes environmental protections and community consultation requirements.