Real Prospectors, Real Mines: A Perspective on Mining in America
Mining built this country. It's time we remembered that—and recognized the people who still do the work.
There's a disconnect in this country between the things we consume and the work it takes to produce them. We want our electric cars and our smartphones and our solar panels, but we don't want to think too hard about where the materials come from.
## The Truth About Mining
Every piece of technology you own started in a hole in the ground somewhere. The copper in your wiring, the lithium in your batteries, the rare earth elements in your screen—all of it was mined. By somebody. Somewhere.
And here's the uncomfortable truth: most of it wasn't mined in the United States. Not because we don't have the resources—we do. But because we've made it nearly impossible to operate a mine in this country.
## The Human Cost of "Not in My Backyard"
When we refuse to mine in America, we don't stop mining. We just move it somewhere else. Somewhere with fewer regulations. Somewhere with no EPA. Somewhere where the people doing the work have no protections.
In the Congo, children dig for cobalt in conditions that would be criminal in the United States. In Peru, young men die in their thirties from breathing sulfur fumes in volcanic mines. In China, entire landscapes are sacrificed to feed our appetite for rare earth elements.
And we call this progress.
## What Mining Really Looks Like
I've spent decades in mining country. I've crawled through abandoned adits and explored tailings piles and stood in the ruins of old stamp mills. I've seen what mining was, and I've seen what it could be.
Modern American mining is nothing like the free-for-all of the 1800s. Environmental regulations are strict. Reclamation is required. Workers have protections. Is it perfect? No. But it's a far cry from the unregulated extraction happening in the developing world.
## The Bottom Line
We have a choice. We can continue to pretend that our consumption has no consequences, that the materials we depend on appear by magic. Or we can acknowledge that mining is necessary, that it's going to happen somewhere, and that it's better for everyone if it happens under the rule of law.
Mining built this country. It's time we remembered that. And it's time we recognized that the real cost of "Not in My Backyard" is paid by people who have no choice in the matter.
Johnny Walker
Johnny has been prospecting Colorado and Arizona for over 20 years. He runs Prospector Center with his wife Laurie, sharing practical knowledge gained from countless hours in the field.
