Slag from metal processing may help capture and store CO2 emissions. A new Concordia-led study suggests that iron-rich slag, one of mining’s biggest waste products could help store carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions. The researchers examined whether slag, a waste material generated from metal processing, can trap the greenhouse gas under realistic conditions. While scientists have long known slag can store CO₂ by forming solid minerals, most studies focus on systems that are heavily dependent on water. This study, published in Chemical Engineering Journal, looks at what happens in conditions that are more realistic, with low-to-moderate moisture. Using slag from a Quebec smelter,…
Author: TJ Markle
From the Australian outback to Ethiopia and the Democratic Republic of Congo, the global mining industry is beginning to feel the effects of disruption caused by the war in Iran. War-driven snarl-ups are starting to ripple through supply chains, squeezing access to key mining inputs while driving up costs to produce some of the world’s most sought-after metals. The biggest impacts are from diesel, the main fuel powering heavy equipment at mine sites, as well as sulfur, used in processing about a sixth of the world’s copper. “The supply chain is breaking down,” Ivanhoe Mines Ltd. founder and co-chairman Robert…
An overview of socioenvironmental governance in the sector This case study is part of a broader project focused on strengthening supply chain resilience through analysis of the environmental and associated social impacts of critical minerals using case studies of nickel, lithium, and copper. It describes environmental and associated social issues from nickel mining and processing in Ontario, Canada, and examines policy measures for managing them. READ THE PDF – https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2026-04/nickel-mining-ontario-canada.pdf By – https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/nickel-mining-ontario-canada
The US and the European Union on Friday deepened their coordination on critical minerals as part of a broader push by Western allies to loosen China’s grip on materials crucial to advanced manufacturing. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and European Union Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic signed a memorandum of understanding for a partnership on producing and securing critical minerals, with a specific action plan for trade announced separately. Rubio did not mention China in his remarks, but said the preliminary agreement with Brussels reflected growing awareness among Western allies of the importance of supply chains and critical minerals for their economic…
Brazil sees no need to create a state-run critical minerals company, Industry Minister Marcio Elias Rosa said Friday, pushing back on proposals for a state-backed entity. “There is no need whatsoever to create a state-owned company to carry out the exploration or processing of critical minerals,” Rosa told local broadcaster CanalGov, adding the current regulatory framework already offers incentives for the sector. His comments come as a proposed national framework for critical minerals remains stalled in Congress and the Lula administration misses its own deadline to deliver a broader mining strategy. The bill, led by federal deputy Arnaldo Jardim, includes…
The United States is increasingly being drawn into the opaque supply chains of illicit mining after an investigation by The New York Times tied some of its gold supply to Colombian criminal networks. Drawing on interviews, trade records and field reporting, the NYT detailed how illegally mined gold in Colombia — often controlled by armed groups and drug cartels — is laundered through intermediaries and exported with seemingly legitimate paperwork before entering global supply chains. In some cases, that gold made its way into the supply chain of the US Mint, which under federal law must use America-mined gold for…
State tenders are handing Kurdistan’s resources to companies, leaving vast areas under threat from geothermal, solar and mining projects. Ecological devastation is unfolding across every part of Kurdistan. Forests, valleys, rivers and mountains are under intense assault. The state and its affiliated companies are acting in tandem to destroy Kurdish geography, deplete its resources and render it uninhabitable. Agricultural lands are being wiped out, people are being stripped of their livelihoods, and communities are being uprooted from their land. Alongside the wars waged against Kurds since the 1990s, profit-driven and capital-oriented policies have been implemented across Kurdistan. Villages have been…
A new mining agreement provides no benefits for Mexico and fails to address health and environmental impacts. The U.S. and Mexico have established a mining agreement which has Indigenous and other residents of the Sierra Norte mountains, as well as activists around Mexico, worried. Announced on February 4, the U.S.-Mexico Action Plan on Critical Minerals aims to guarantee the U.S.’s supply of minerals for its arms industry, technology like data centers and smartphones, and the so-called energy transition. It sets out price floors, identification of mining projects, geological mapping coordination, and mineral location identification for the U.S., but provides no…
Amid rising geopolitical tensions, access to critical minerals has become a new frontline in great power competition. Rules governing their extraction and management remain fragmented, but one UN agency says it has developed tools that may help bridge regulatory gaps. As the nature of war shifts from frontline combat to AI-assisted, remote-controlled drone attacks, countries are intensifying efforts to secure minerals needed to power high-speed processors, autonomous weapons systems and sensors. The green energy transition, somewhat boosted by a surge in fossil fuel prices caused by the war in Iran, has also put pressure on demand for minerals used to…
Democratic Republic of Congo’s mines inspectorate said on Monday it had created a paramilitary mining guard to secure mining sites and mineral supply chains, as the world’s top cobalt producer tries to curb smuggling and insecurity in the sector and boost investor confidence. The programme will be funded by a $100 million budget under strategic partnerships with the United States and the United Arab Emirates, the General Inspectorate of Mines (IGM) said in a statement. Congo, the world’s second‑largest copper supplier with major reserves of lithium, coltan and gold, is battling a Rwanda‑backed rebellion in its mineral‑rich east that has killed thousands…