[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 5039 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 5039

    To establish a mineral and mining innovation program within the 
 Department of Energy to advance domestic mineral resources, economic 
         growth, and national security, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           September 12, 2024

 Mr. Hickenlooper introduced the following bill; which was read twice 
     and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To establish a mineral and mining innovation program within the 
 Department of Energy to advance domestic mineral resources, economic 
         growth, and national security, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Unearth Innovation Act''.

SEC. 2. MINERAL AND MINING INNOVATION INITIATIVE.

    (a) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Indian tribe.--The term ``Indian Tribe'' has the 
        meaning given the term in section 4 of the Indian Self-
        Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5304).
            (2) Initiative.--The term ``initiative'' means the mineral 
        and mining innovation initiative established under subsection 
        (b).
            (3) Mining university.--The term ``mining university'' 
        means an institution of higher education (as defined in section 
        101(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001(a))) 
        with a mining, metallurgical, geological, or mineral 
        engineering program accredited by the Accreditation Board for 
        Engineering and Technology, Inc.
            (4) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Energy.
    (b) Establishment.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall establish an initiative 
within the Department of Energy, the purposes of which are--
            (1) to support the research, development, deployment, and 
        commercialization of emerging technologies and practices 
        suitable for responsibly identifying, characterizing, mining, 
        extracting, processing, and reprocessing the minerals required 
        across multiple industries in the United States to advance 
        domestic mineral resources, economic growth, national security, 
        and other goals, as determined by the Secretary;
            (2) to accelerate the research, development, and 
        integration of advanced technologies, data analytics, 
        responsible mining and mineral recovery practices, advanced 
        techniques for separation or processing facilities to minimize 
        human impacts, and extractive processes intended to minimize 
        environmental impact, increase per-unit productivity, optimize 
        resource utilization, and promote technology adaptation, 
        community engagement, and social acceptance of mining; and
            (3) to coordinate with the National Institute of 
        Occupational Safety and Health of the Centers for Disease 
        Control and Prevention, the Office of Surface Mining 
        Reclamation and Enforcement, and the Mine Safety and Health 
        Administration of the Department of Labor on safety and mining 
        innovation.
    (c) Duties.--
            (1) In general.--In carrying out the initiative, the 
        Secretary, in coordination with the Secretary of the Interior, 
        shall identify, study, evaluate, test, and demonstrate hard 
        rock mineral mining, unconventional mineral recovery, and 
        processing technologies and practices to improve--
                    (A) identification of new potential domestic 
                mineral resources and trends;
                    (B) characterization and mapping of domestic 
                mineral resources;
                    (C) statistical capabilities of the United States, 
                with respect to domestic and global mineral resources;
                    (D) environmental performance of mining and mineral 
                recovery, including--
                            (i) reducing air emissions and improving 
                        water management;
                            (ii) improving energy efficiency; and
                            (iii) minimizing tailings and other waste, 
                        mining footprint, and environmental impact;
                    (E) efficiency and productivity of mining, mineral 
                processing, and resource utilization;
                    (F) data collection, analytics, and sharing;
                    (G) mine safety;
                    (H) mine reclamation, remediation, and reuse;
                    (I) community engagement, consultation with Indian 
                Tribes, and social perception of mining;
                    (J) emerging and new technologies for mineral 
                recovery from unconventional sources; and
                    (K) training and education for the mining 
                workforce.
            (2) Research and development areas of focus.--In carrying 
        out the initiative, the Secretary, in coordination with the 
        Secretary of the Interior, shall focus research, development, 
        deployment, and commercialization activities in areas related 
        to--
                    (A) mineral exploration, discovery, and 
                characterization science and technology, including--
                            (i) geophysical surveys;
                            (ii) geochemical surveys;
                            (iii) uncrewed survey platforms, including 
                        uncrewed aerial vehicles;
                            (iv) proximal sensing, including automatic 
                        spectroscopic scanning of drilling cores;
                            (v) characterizing mine waste, including 
                        mine-influenced water; and
                            (vi) other advanced technologies;
                    (B) mineral production and mine remediation and 
                closure, including--
                            (i) advanced drilling, sampling, and 
                        extraction technologies;
                            (ii) mine design, including innovations 
                        that maximize resource use, environmental 
                        benefit, and end uses of land;
                            (iii) digital mining solutions;
                            (iv) in-situ mineral recovery and other 
                        advanced extraction techniques;
                            (v) processing techniques, including--
                                    (I) geometallurgy;
                                    (II) beneficiation;
                                    (III) extraction from increasingly 
                                low-grade ores and deeper mines;
                                    (IV) co-mineral and byproduct 
                                recovery;
                                    (V) multimineral refining;
                                    (VI) whole rock processing; and
                                    (VII) greenhouse gas reduction and 
                                sequestration; and
                            (vi) remediation techniques, including--
                                    (I) reclamation;
                                    (II) tailings and waste management; 
                                and
                                    (III) extraction and reprocessing 
                                of valued materials from waste on 
                                abandoned mine land and at active and 
                                inactive mine sites;
                    (C) critical mineral recycling technologies, 
                including battery recycling;
                    (D) social acceptance of mining and mineral 
                processes, technologies, and projects, including--
                            (i) research to identify perspectives and 
                        priorities of communities local to prospective 
                        mining sites;
                            (ii) research to identify strategies for 
                        community engagement and potential short-term 
                        and long-term benefits of mining for local 
                        communities;
                            (iii) research to provide socially-informed 
                        technology research, design, and development 
                        priorities;
                            (iv) best practices for developing 
                        community benefit agreements and plans that 
                        address community priorities and mitigate 
                        potential environmental and economic harm that 
                        may result from mining; and
                            (v) consultation and engagement with Indian 
                        Tribes; and
                    (E) other research areas, as determined by the 
                Secretary, to support the program.
            (3) Areas of focus for reevaluation.--Not less frequently 
        than once every 5 years, the Secretary, in carrying out the 
        initiative in coordination with the Secretary of the Interior, 
        shall consult with representatives from academic institutions 
        (including mining universities), National Laboratories, and the 
        mining industry--
                    (A) to reevaluate the status of, and opportunities 
                for, mineral and mining research and development; and
                    (B) to revise the list of areas described in 
                paragraph (2)(E).
    (d) Coordination.--In carrying out this section, the Secretary 
shall coordinate with the Secretary of the Interior through, at a 
minimum--
            (1) interagency activities associated with the research, 
        development, deployment, and commercialization of hard rock 
        mining and unconventional mineral recovery technologies;
            (2) leveraging existing mineral research within Federal 
        agencies;
            (3) engagement with industry, academia, and nongovernmental 
        entities to identify innovation gaps and opportunities related 
        to minerals and mining;
            (4) alignment of applied academic and Federal mineral and 
        mining research and development with economic, energy, and 
        national security needs; and
            (5) certification or validation of emerging technologies or 
        best practices that demonstrate significant economic, 
        environmental, and security benefits, including resource 
        optimization, environmental sustainability, community 
        engagement, and workforce development.
    (e) Collaboration.--
            (1) In general.--In carrying out this section, the 
        Secretary and the Secretary of the Interior may enter into 
        cooperative agreements, contracts, or other arrangements, 
        including partnerships, with academic, public, private, and 
        nongovernmental entities located in the United States, any 
        territory or possession of the United States, or a country 
        described in subparagraph (B) or (C) of section 12(3) of the 
        Strategic and Critical Materials Stock Piling Act (50 U.S.C. 
        98h-3(3)).
            (2) Prioritization.--In carrying out paragraph (1), the 
        Secretary and the Secretary of the Interior shall, to the 
        maximum extent practicable, prioritize entering into 
        cooperative agreements, contracts, or other arrangements with 
        academic institutions, including mining universities.
    (f) Report.--Not later than 3 years after the date of enactment of 
this Act, the Secretary and the Secretary of the Interior shall submit 
to Congress a report describing the results of the duties carried out 
under subsection (c).
    (g) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated to the Secretary to carry out this section $100,000,000 
for each of fiscal years 2025 through 2034, to remain available until 
expended.
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