The Copper Conundrum
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Heard Alaska's governor on the radio yesterday. He was talking EVs, batteries and rare earth minerals.
He was also talking about the fact that the Biden Administration will not let Alaska develop those minerals.https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/epa-uses-rare-veto-to-block-alaska-copper-gold-mine-plan
That copper mine is estimated to contain $1T worth of copper, not counting other minerals in the area.
Some facts about Alaska that many (I didn't) don't know...Since so few people lived in Alaska when it became a state (200-300 thousand), the Feds not only owned most if the land, but written into the statehood documents is a clause by where the Feds have much more power to encourage and regulate industrial development, even on private lands.
The governor said at the time, this was done to try to encourage development, but has morphed into a major stumbling block to getting economic development started.
He said Alaska needs jobs and the country needs the minerals.
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Interesting, indeed.
Is the federal control of lands set in stone, or can it be revisited now that the population is larger?