Mountain Pass Mine, California

The Mountain Pass Mine is a big pit and chewed up landscape on the north side of Interstate 15, near the CA/NV border. It is often cited as the only rare earth mine in the USA. Rare earth elements are essential to many precision electronics. The rare earth samarium, for example, is used in magnets in motors and speakers, including headphone electromagnets, and another rare earth, cerium oxide, is used in fluorescent lighting. Other rare earths are used in gasolines, television screens, medical equipment, cell phones, and lithium batteries. Chinese companies dominate the industry, controlling 90% of the market. Mountain Pass seems to open and close following China’s manipulation of the market. After a big ramp-up and modernization program, Molycorp reopened the mine in 2012, then closed it in 2015, undercut by low rates for Chinese product. Unable to continue to pay off its modernization, Molycorp declared bankruptcy. The mine was bought at auction in July, 2017, by a Chinese-led consortium, which may open the mine again in the future, depending on US regulatory decisions.