Dear All,
The Geological Society is composing a response to the House of
Commons Science and Technology Committee's enquiry into
strategic metals. It is of relevance to geophysicists as
explorers for and users of such metals.
The S&T Committee's website says:
“This inquiry has the potential to be wide-ranging, from
concerns about the availability of rare earth elements to how
metals are recycled from discarded technological devices, some
unfortunately through the use of exploited child labour in
developing countries.”
Metals such as cobalt, platinum, titanium, tantalum and the
rare earth elements are important resources, widely used in
modern technological devices. For example, neodymium, a rare
earth element, is used in magnets which are used in computer
hard disk drives, electric vehicles and MRI (magnetic resonance imaging).
There has been recent speculation that the availability of
some of these metals is in decline, however, the exact impact
of such a decline on UK high technology industries is unclear.
Whilst other metals are more widely available but there are
concerns relating to unethical mining and recycling from discarded
devices. The Science and Technology Committee has today announced
its inquiry examining the importance of strategic metals to the UK. "
http://www.parliament.uk/business/committees/committees-a-z/commons-select/science-and-technology-committee/inquiries/strategically-important-metals/
If you have any input that might be useful to the Geological
Society, please contact Nic Bilham at [log in to unmask]
Regards,
Sheila Peacock
British Geophysical Association.
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