Isabel Barton weighs in on mining 'hot topic' for Grist

The nonprofit climate-focused news outlet Grist interviewed Isabel Barton, associate professor in the School of Mining Engineering and Mineral Resources, about a study published in the journal Science.

The study analyzed what kinds of elements and resources within the rocks of dozens of mines across the U.S., and found that efforts to increase recovery in U.S. mine waste could significantly reduce the nation's reliance on mineral imports. 

There is enough lithium in one year of U.S. mine waste, for example, to power 10 million electric vehicles. For manganese, it’s enough for 99 million. Those figures far surpass both U.S. import levels of those elements and current demand for them. 

The general thrust of the Science study is “not new,” Barton told Grist. “It is a very hot topic in mining these days.” 

The attention is contributing to a burgeoning shift in thinking, from an intense focus on the target mineral to consideration of what else could be produced, including critical minerals.

“There are some that are probably relatively simple. There are others that are heinously difficult to get to,” said Barton, and whether a mineral is recovered will ultimately come down to cost. “Mining companies are there to make a profit.”