Letter: Support for US mining will combat foreign influence, pollution
Utah has rich reserves of minerals, energy resources, and land. It’s an edge we’re lucky to have, not only for ourselves but for our country. Unfortunately, many environmentalists don’t like to see mining on American soil, so they strangle them in red tape. They seem to prefer to get critical materials from faraway places.
The senselessness is beyond me. They willfully ignore the global nature of emissions, discounting the environmental and human rights abuses that happen beyond our borders. In doing that, they cede more power to Russia and China, who aggressively weaponize energy and mineral supply chains at the world’s expense. Worst of all, they do this with full understanding that limiting American supply doesn’t curb growing demand.
Politicians are now waking up to a reality; our reliance on China has become too pronounced to ignore. The first step to de-risking is showing the world where extraction is done best: here in the US. American mining operations are at least twice as clean as China’s state-owned counterparts.
The picture is all too clear: While our energy resources fund our public schools, Russia funds their war in Ukraine, and China funds their debt diplomacy and military expansion. And if it’s done cleaner and better in the US, someone needs to tell me why it’s not done here.
Congressman Moore’s support for drawing attention to China’s and Russia’s environmental and human rights transgressions is timely. It will help Utah producers, ensure our national resiliency, and, above all, hold accountable those who relish in global instability.
Mitchel Garsz
President and CEO of Utah’s American Latino Chamber of Commerce