Get Ready, Because Here I Come

by earlthepearl137

This song is 20 minutes and 31 seconds long.  It’s mostly an instrumental, so you can listen to it and enjoy it while reading this blog. Actually, it should only take a few minutes to read this blog, but you’ll probably want to listen to the entire song, anyway. It’s a masterpiece.

In 1982, the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) was adopted.  It established a legal framework for the use of the world’s oceans, including the regulation of deep-sea mining in international waters.

The United States has still not ratified UNCLOS.

UNCLOS has faced opposition from certain U.S. senators over the years, preventing its ratification.  A notable instance occurred in 2012, when a group of 34 Republican senators, led by Senator Jim DeMint (R-SC), publicly opposed the treaty.  This group included senators like Kelly Ayotte (R-NH) and Rob Portman (R-OH), among others.  Their opposition was enough to block the two-thirds majority required for ratification in the Senate.

What was the result?  U.S. companies didn’t want to invest billions in deep-sea mining in international waters, without having the legal protection of the U.S. Government as a signatory of the U.N. resolution.

Guess who did sign the U.N resolution and invest heavily in deep-sea mining technology?  China.

Well, over the years, oceanographers discovered an interesting area on the ocean floor where polymetallic nodules were “growing.”  These small potato-shaped mineral deposits have been formed over millions of years as minerals like manganese, nickel, cobalt, and rare earth elements precipitated from seawater and formed around small rocks or shell fragments, kinda like the way pearls form around bits of sand inside an oyster’s shell.  The greatest accumulation of these nodules is found in an area called the Clarion-Clipperton Zone in the Pacific Ocean between Hawaii and Mexico.

So, U.S. companies are not mining these deep-sea nodules but China is, and a funny thing happened on the way to the future.  We’ve known the value of manganese, nickel, and cobalt for centuries.  The value of rare earth materials , however, was not so well known.  Recently, in a speech about a potential deal with Ukraine, President Trump even referred to them incorrectly as “raw earth materials.”  No big surprise.  He’s not exactly a scientist.

I’m not a scientist either so I had to look them up.  Here’s what I found.

Rare earth elements (REEs) consist of 17 elements on the periodic table, including the 15 lanthanides plus scandium and yttrium. Here are their atomic numbers:

  • Lanthanides:
    • Lanthanum (57), Cerium (58), Praseodymium (59), Neodymium (60), Promethium (61), Samarium (62), Europium (63), Gadolinium (64), Terbium (65), Dysprosium (66), Holmium (67), Erbium (68), Thulium (69), Ytterbium (70), Lutetium (71).
  • Others:
    • Scandium (21) and Yttrium (39).

These elements are prized for their unique properties and are critical to many technologies, like magnets, batteries, and LEDs.

You don’t need to memorize the names of these elements, but let’s have another look at that last sentence.  These elements are prized for their unique properties and are critical to many technologies, like magnets, batteries, and LEDs.

So, while China has been harvesting these precious “potatoes” off the ocean floor, the U.S. has been waiting since 1982 for the Senate to ratify UNCLOS. The result is that China is now the world’s largest producer of rare earth elements, and the U.S. relies heavily on imports, particularly from China, for processed rare earth materials.  China is kicking our ass in the area of refining rare earth elements.

Let’s revisit that sentence one more time.  These elements are prized for their unique properties and are critical to many technologies, like magnets, batteries, and LEDs.

Ukraine has rich rare earth deposits, which is why – Surprise Surprise – Donald Trump wants to quickly end the war in Ukraine so that the U.S. can start mining their rare earth elements.

So, Ukraine, Donald Trump desperately wants your rare earth elements and he will stop at nothing to get them. He’ll even cooperate with Russia. So, like the band Rare Earth said in 1970, “Get ready, because here I come.”

Peace & Love, and all of the above,

Earl

7 thoughts on “Get Ready, Because Here I Come”

    1. I researched that when I wrote the article:

      The United States has not ratified UNCLOS, despite being involved in its negotiation. The primary reasons for this include:

      1. Concerns Over Sovereignty: Some U.S. lawmakers believe that ratifying UNCLOS would subject the country to international regulations that could limit its autonomy, particularly regarding seabed mining and military operations.
      2. Economic and Resource Sharing: UNCLOS includes provisions for sharing the benefits of seabed mining with developing nations. Critics argue that this could disadvantage U.S. companies by requiring them to share profits or technology.
      3. Political Opposition: Despite support from multiple U.S. presidents and military leaders, the treaty has faced resistance in the Senate, where a two-thirds majority is required for ratification. Opposition has often been driven by concerns about ceding authority to international bodies.

      As a result, the U.S. remains a non-signatory, which limits its ability to participate in international seabed mining activities and decision-making under UNCLOS. Let me know if you’d like to explore this further!

      Reply

    1. As I do more and more research, the pieces are starting to come together. Russia will let us mine the Ukrainian rare-earth elements if we just stop aiding Ukraine. We’re selling out the country for profit.

      Reply

      1. So Ulraine’s permission to mine those assets doesn’t really mean anything? Bonnie

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