Mining law might go modern
U.S. mining law has gone unchanged for more than a century, and large corporations have taken advantage of the free pass given to the original miners of the Western frontier. But Sam Eaton tells us that could soon change.
U.S. Capitol Building (Paul J. Richards/AFP/Getty Images)
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Doug Krizner: Minerals like gold, silver and copper taken from federal lands could soon get a lot more expensive. Today, lawmakers consider a proposal to change U.S. mining law for the first time in more than a century. From the Marketplace Sustainability Desk, Sam Eaton reports.
Sam Eaton: When Ulysses S. Grant signed the 1872 Mining Act into law, it was aimed at giving pick-and-shovel miners access to public lands on the vast Western frontier.
Today, that law still gives them a free pass. But the iconic lone miner has long been replaced by multinational corporations. They extract billions of dollars of minerals from public lands, royalty-free.
Jane Danowitz is with the Pew Campaign for Responsible Mining.
Jane Danowitz: The bottom line is modern mining needs a modern law.
Western lawmakers have thwarted past attempts to change the law. But Danowitz says this time around, it's different.
Danowitz: This is a new West, where protecting public lands is the major driver of local economic interests, rather than extracting metals from them.
But the metal industry says mining still plays a vital role in the western economy. It plans to spend about $20 million defending the industry through advertising and lobbying.
In Los Angeles, I'm Sam Eaton for Marketplace.
