The Biden administration on Friday signed off on what could be the nation’s first mine to produce antimony, a mineral at the center of a national trade spat with China.
The Forest Service released a final record of decision for Perpetua Resource’s Stibnite project in Idaho’s Salmon River Mountains, which has secured billions of dollars in federal funding despite raising concerns among members of the nearby Nez Perce Tribe.
Chinese officials earlier this month blocked exports of antimony, a silvery-white metal used in a host of military applications — from night vision goggles to explosives, flares and nuclear weapons — and a growing role in the renewable energy sector.
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Today, the U.S. has no active mines producing the metal.
