According to a report from MiningNews.net, Democratic lawmakers have urged the Trump administration not to support the exploration and development plan of Australian junior company Dateline Resources in the Mojave Desert, California.
In a letter to Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, US Senators Alex Padilla, Adam Schiff, and Martin Heinrich stated that the recent approval by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) for Dateline Resources to conduct rare earth exploration violated federal law, flouted the authority of the National Park Service (NPS), and set a "dangerous precedent" for industrial development within the US National Park System.
"We strongly urge you to revoke this decision and uphold the integrity of the Mojave National Preserve and the National Park System," the letter read.
US officials revealed that the Mojave National Preserve is home to the Colosseum gold-rare earth mine, Dateline's primary asset. The preserve was established in 1994 under the California Desert Protection Act (CDPA) to protect "rare plant species and critical wildlife corridors" in the area.
"The CDPA explicitly stipulates that any mining activities within the Mojave Preserve must comply with the Mining in the Parks Act, which requires a mineral compatibility review and approval of the operation plan by the NPS," the Democratic letter stated.
"However, the BLM appears to be attempting to circumvent this law by authorizing Dateline's project based on a 1985 plan initially approved for different minerals, different ownership, and issued prior to the establishment of the preserve."
The 1985 plan only involved gold mining.
While gold remains Dateline's core mineral at Colosseum, the Australian company announced plans last month to commence rare earth drilling, shortly after Trump declared strong support on social media for "America's second rare earth mine."
In their letter to the BLM, the Democrats claimed that the shift in the mineral being developed to rare earths lacked "any new environmental assessment or mineral compatibility review."
The lawmakers urged the Trump administration to revoke the BLM's reliance on the 1985 plan, affirm the NPS's jurisdiction, require compliance with the Mining in the Parks Act, and conduct a comprehensive mineral suitability review of Dateline's access rights.
The junior company updated its scoping study data in August, revealing that the project could be mined for eight years, producing 71,000 ounces of gold annually at an all-in sustaining cost (AISC) of $1,490 per ounce.
Although Trump's remarks about the daily schedule suggested that the {{mine}} had been approved "after years of stagnation," the Democratic Party's response indicated that the project still faced some regulatory hurdles.
