One of the few sectors that consistently added jobs in 2011 was U.S. minerals mining. Today, this industry supports 1.1 million American jobs nationwide and has enabled modern products such as aircrafts, medical equipment and state-of-the-art electronics to come to fruition. Some of the fastest growing industries in America—including high tech, automotive manufacturing and renewable energy—rely on minerals to operate.

In a December 2011 PricewaterhouseCoopers study, 67 percent of respondents—senior executives in these industries worldwide—said they expect their companies to be affected by minerals and metals supply scarcity in the next five years.

Reflecting on the PricewaterhouseCoopers study, Hal Quinn, president of the National Mining Association, stated, “If we are to foster American ingenuity, build a stable economy and create jobs in 2012 and beyond, the U.S. portfolio for growth must include a secure, domestic minerals supply. We must not allow our nation’s minerals needs to go unmet, especially when these very resources help put Americans back to work and drive our economy.”