The Unearth Innovation Act
S. 5039
S. 5039
The Unearth Innovation Act (S. 5039) would establish a Mineral and Mining Innovation Program within the Department of Energy to advance domestic mineral resources, economic growth and national security. The bill would support the research, development, deployment and commercialization of emerging technologies and practices to responsibly identify, characterize, mine, extract, process and reprocess the minerals required across multiple industries in the United States. In coordination with the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health of the Center 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, the bill would accelerate the integration of advanced technologies to minimize human and environmental impacts, increase per-unit productivity, optimize resource utilization and promote technology adaptation, community engagement and social acceptance of mining.
Securing a reliable and sustainable supply of critical minerals necessary for key industries including renewable energy, defense and technology is a continuous challenge as current mining and mineral processing methods can be environmentally harmful, inefficient and reliant on outdated technologies. National and economic security is further threatened as the U.S. relies heavily on foreign nations for our critical mineral supply chain, specifically adversarial countries. The Unearth Innovation Act directly combats these challenges by establishing a Mining and Mineral Innovation Program to invest domestically in mining innovation and technology that is otherwise heavily underfunded.
The Mining and Mineral Innovation Program, with the authorization of $100 million annually from FY2025 to FY2034, would technologically advance the mining sector to improve energy efficiency and reduce environmental footprints while engaging with communities to improve the social acceptance of mining. Successful implementation of the program would bolster national and economic security through securing mineral supply chains domestically.
Sen. John Hickenlooper (D-CO)
Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC)
ClearPath Action