The Trump administration on Friday announced a major step to accelerate domestic critical mineral production by fast-tracking permitting for 10 mining projects under the federal FAST-41 infrastructure initiative.
The move, jointly announced on April 18 by the Department of the Interior and the Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council (Permitting Council), follows President Donald Trump’s recent executive order directing agencies to immediately facilitate the development of U.S. mineral resources that are vital to national security and economic resilience.
“Our national and economic security are now acutely threatened by our reliance upon hostile foreign powers’ mineral production,” Trump wrote in the March 20 order. “It is imperative for our national security that the United States take immediate action to facilitate domestic mineral production to the maximum possible extent.”…