HR1023 98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR1023 LRB098 20994 MST 58683 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, Rare Earth Elements are 17 individual minerals that are extremely important in the production of a wide variety of products that have domestic, environmental, and defensive uses, including mobile phone technology, aerospace instruments, radiation medicine, MRI & PET scanning, clean energy, radar systems, and satellites; and

WHEREAS, It is estimated that China is responsible for more than 90% of the global supply of Rare Earth Elements in use today and has been suspected of price fixing these materials by reducing exportation of "raw" elements in favor of finished products; and

WHEREAS, Current United States regulatory policy inhibits the processing, safe storage, and development of potential uses for Thorium, a companion element of rare earth mining and processing; this greatly enhances China's rare earth monopoly power; and

WHEREAS, Missouri's Pea Ridge Mine in Washington County is capable of mining all 17 of the Rare Earth Elements and the by-product material, Thorium, which can be used as a source fuel for nuclear energy; Thorium is not only more abundant, but also safer than uranium; and

WHEREAS, The United States does not currently have a facility capable of refining these Rare Earth Minerals in a cost efficient manner, while China and other countries continue to invest in new refining and mining technologies; and

WHEREAS, Rare Earth Elements are becoming increasingly more important and valuable, and the United States is too dependent on foreign sources that gouge prices and exploit populations in favor of higher profits; and

WHEREAS, Rare Earths Element can be extracted from coal and coal tailings and can help contribute to U.S. Rare Earth production, giving new life and jobs to the State's coal industry, while making it cleaner and more efficient; and

WHEREAS, The coal industry will benefit greatly from other Rare Earth refining byproducts such as Thorium which may help create clean liquid fuels from coal and make Illinois a leader in clean-coal technology; and

WHEREAS, All by-products of Rare Earth production will be safely managed and stored on the site of the central Rare Earth Refinery, Strategic Reserve, and Illinois will lead the world in developing the safest strategic reserve to store, trace, and manage every gram of Thorium by-product from Rare Earth Production; and

WHEREAS, It is in the best interest of national security, job creation, and quality of life to mine and refine Rare Earth Elements within the United States to lessen our dependency on China and other foreign sources of these materials; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we strongly encourage the Rare Earth Element mining that is taking place at the Pea Ridge Mine in Missouri; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we also strongly encourage the placement of the Rare Earth Cooperative in East St. Louis or another location within Illinois, to help shift our dependency on foreign rare earth materials, bring stabilization to the global market for these types of materials, and create jobs for the residents of Illinois; and be it further

RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution are presented to the members of the Illinois Congressional Delegation, U.S. Senator Richard J. Durbin, U.S. Senator Mark Kirk, and Governor Pat Quinn.