A three-year study of the tailings pile at an abandoned Moriah iron mine shows that the site has significant amounts of the rare earth elements needed to produce advanced electronics and national weapons systems, a Boston company told Essex County supervisors Monday.
Rare earths burst into the world’s consciousness this year when China — which dominates all phases of rare earth production — threatened to withhold its supply, forcing the White House to retreat from the extreme tariffs it had threatened to levy on Chinese goods.
The situation also added fuel to a long-simmering quest to find other sources of rare earths to protect the supply chains of industrial producers in America and around the globe.
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It’s long been known that tailings — the gritty waste left behind after the extraction of iron ore — contained traces of rare earths. What hasn’t been known in detail is the type, the quantity and whether they could be refined in a way that was consistent with the Adirondack environmental ethic.
But on Monday, representatives from Phoenix Tailings, a Boston-based start-up who have signed a multi-year agreement with the supervisors to study the old Barton Mine site, said findings justify moving on to the development stage, with full production possible in another two to three years.
“The objective of that agreement was, hey, give us three years to see if we can do what has not been done before, and come back to you with the results,” said Patrick Portmann, Phoenix Tailings chief of staff. “If we have something, then we go on two more years, and get a pilot (plant) developed. The good news is that we do have something, and we know today what we have.”
In its report, Phoenix said assays of the 3 million metric tons of tailings at Barton revealed concentrations of eight rare elements used in such applications as lasers, jet engines, high-strength magnets and ceramics.
Portmann said Phoenix is now looking for investors, along with state and federal grants, to build the production capacity to separate and refine the elements in a way that is both profitable and environmentally benign.
Industry is showing an interest in the process, he said, including Mercedes Benz and BMW, whose representatives have visited the site — and the iron museum in Port Henry — and hope to reduce their dependence on the Chinese.
“This could be a cornerstone of what becomes a sustainable source of rare earths,” Portmann said.
The Barton mine was just one of many across the eastern Adirondacks, and the tailing piles they left behind can run into the millions of tons. Much of the metal extracted in the 1940s went into America’s powerful war machine, so there are historical parallels in terms of national defense. Today, one F-35 fighter jet contains 900 pounds of metals derived from rare earths.
While not household names individually, rare earths as a class have been escalating in geopolitical importance. Today, China produces close to 70% of the ore, and 90% of the value chain, which includes separation, refining and metallurgy.
Rare earths are not rare, but they are widely scattered, making them difficult to efficiently extract. However, they are concentrated in mine waste that is already above ground. Along with mining rare earths, Phoenix said the process can also clean up these tailing piles.
“it’s really exciting to work on a project where we’re going to create a great product that the nation needs, and we can clean up some of these tailings piles — some of which are worse than others — while we do it,” said Matt Ingargiola, senior development engineer at Phoenix. “I think we are in a good position to see this materialize.”
One reason rare earth production has lapsed domestically is the toxicity of the agents needed to separate them from the waste. Phoenix said its process is different.
“The methodology that we intend to use is not conventional,” Ingargiola said. “We don’t want to use the common, harsh chemical standard the way everybody else does it. We want to do things sustainably, so we are working very hard to do this in a way that’s regenerative and so everything that we use, we can just regenerate it and use it again rather than creating waste.”
Essex County supervisors were broadly supportive of the partnership, which several said they saw as a patriotic duty. The pilot plant would employ up to 15 people, and under the agreement, the county would receive 5% of any profits.
“I’m proud that you guys are on board and we’re doing something to help our country,” said North Elba Supervisor Derek Doty.
Moriah Supervisor Matt Brassard said he’s been in monthly contact with Phoenix, and has made multiple site visits and been pleased with the company’s transparency. “I have full confidence that they can get this thing off the ground, and that it’s going to be a win win,” he said.
Still, some supervisors noted that other promising proposals that have come their way through the years have failed to pan out, and appeared dubious that Phoenix would encounter smooth sailing with the Adirondack Park Agency and the Department of Environmental Conservation.
“We have multiple (tailing) piles in the county that can benefit from this if they’re successful here,” said Minerva Supervisor Steve McNally. “So good luck with the APA, DEC and New York state overreach.”
