The U.S. Dept. of Interior posted a video of Sec. Ken Salazar's remarks at the Grand Canyon last week, calling for a 20 year ban on exploration and mining on 1 million acres of federal land in northern Arizona.
A ban is a broad brush that paints the prohibitionists as shallow thinkers who also intend to make a 'taking' of small, non-uranium mineral miners' rights, producers of special rare traditional materials mined for local consumption, like turquoise, or vanadinite recoverable by artisan small operations. Banning Corporate mining without protecting, preserving & promoting small mines is to ruin the only viable alternative to big pits where even an idiot can't help but find ore.
Some people base their decisions on facts, others on idealogy.
ReplyDeleteA ban is a broad brush that paints the prohibitionists as shallow thinkers who also intend to make a 'taking' of small, non-uranium mineral miners' rights, producers of special rare traditional materials mined for local consumption, like turquoise, or vanadinite recoverable by artisan small operations. Banning Corporate mining without protecting, preserving & promoting small mines is to ruin the only viable alternative to big pits where even an idiot can't help but find ore.
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