Minerals are Critical to Economic Stability and Security
The United States’ economy and national security are very much tied to minerals. It is not a topic that receives a lot of attention, but if your company is in the business of mining and manufacturing, you understand the significance these essential elements play in our everyday lives.
When we think of renewable energy, we think natural resources like the sun and wind will supply all of the energy. But minerals are needed to make renewable energy and storage technologies, such as wind turbines, (neodymium and dysprosium); rechargeable batteries (cobalt, lithium, nickel, manganese); and applications of solar photovoltaic (cadmium, indium, gallium, selenium, silver, tellurium) semiconducting materials. Electric vehicles require rare earth elements (neodymium and dysprosium) both for their engines and energy storage.
The technology sector, too, uses many rare minerals such as indium for LCD screens on our smart phones and TVs, as well as wind shields on aircraft. Satellites in space that facilitate much of our daily communications are made from aluminum and aluminum alloys.
To better understand the role of critical minerals, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) created a report detailing 35 mineral commodities that our society depends on for economic stability and security. According the USGS, “The list includes aluminum—used in almost all sectors of the economy; the platinum group metals—used for catalytic agents; rare-earth elements—used in batteries and electronics; tin—used as protective coatings and alloys for steel; and titanium—overwhelmingly used as a white pigment or as a metal alloy.”
As part of the report, the USGS states that those critical minerals included have “been identified as a non-fuel mineral or mineral material that is essential to the economic and national security of the United States, that has a supply chain vulnerable to disruption, and that serves an essential function in the manufacturing of a product, the absence of which would have significant consequences for the economy or national security.”
Minerals indeed are a vital commodity that aid in the livelihood of our economy and nation’s security. Westward provides comprehensive geological services including exploration, 3D modeling, reserves estimates, drone surveying, and geophysics to locate and quantify resources and reserves.
To read the full USGS report, visit: