Missouri's “Lead Belt” Poised for American Battery Supply ...

Southeast Missouri&#;s rich deposits of lead ore made it a prime location for lead mining in the 19th and early 20th centuries, supplying lead not only for batteries but also for other applications such as ammunition, construction materials, and various industrial processes. Today, Southeast Missouri continues to supply needed minerals including lead, copper and zinc in a region known as the Viburnum Trend.

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While these minerals are still a valuable resource to the robust battery industry, it is the region&#;s access to other &#;critical minerals&#; such as nickel and cobalt, which are necessary for next generation batteries, that have potential to create an end-to-end supply chain in the state, making the region an American hub for strategic battery materials.

In , The Doe Run Company, which operates one of the world&#;s largest lead mining districts in Southeast Missouri, was awarded a $7 million Department of Defense Critical Minerals Project Grant under the Defense Production Act to construct and commission a demonstration plant capable of producing cobalt and nickel products. Doe Run&#;s minerals and metals resources include lead, copper, zinc, cobalt, nickel, antimony, and tin &#; all essential in the production of battery energy solutions.

In , U.S. Strategic Metals received a $230 million investment from Appian Capital Advisory LLP, a London-based mining financier, which will allow it to complete the first phase of processing operations in a former Fredericktown, Missouri, lead mine that contains the largest reserve of recoverable cobalt in America. U.S. Strategic Materials CEO Stacy Hastie called the milestone a &#;game-changer&#; for the U.S. auto industry and battery manufacturing supply chain that will bring cobalt production to the U.S. 

In the same year, the Biden-Harris administration designated two tech hubs in Missouri; one in the Kansas City region and another in Rolla. The latter, Missouri S&T&#;s Critical Minerals and Materials for Advanced Energy (CM2AE) Tech Hub, will &#;position south-central Missouri as a global leader in critical minerals processing to provide the materials needed to support battery technology&#; according to the U.S. Economic Development Administration. With the designation, the group received initial funding to begin planning and is eligible to apply for more to continue its efforts. 

According to The Doe Run Company, &#;Presently, the U.S. is 100% reliant on net imports for 15 minerals, 12 of which are on the critical minerals list. China and Canada supply the largest number of these nonfuel mineral commodities.&#; Recent major investments in Missouri critical minerals production aim to reduce reliance on imports of mineral commodities.

Missouri is a natural location for electric vehicle (EV) battery manufacturers because of its access to key raw materials as well as its affordable and reliable energy sources, which are crucial for energy-intensive manufacturing processes.

Learn more about Missouri&#;s Energy Industry

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Industrial Mining and Ore Processing

Mining and ore processing are essential industries that supply the majority of minerals, metal and gems needed to produce a wide variety of products and materials. The raw materials are ore deposits that contain valuable metallic and nonmetallic resources. These resources are mined through surface excavation or underground mining. Both surface and underground mining techniques have their own benefits and drawbacks, but surface mining continues to be the dominant method due to lower typical costs and technology development1. Both processes tend to produce large quantities of waste rock, which need to be removed to provide access to the valuable deposits but are not worth processing.

Ores, once mined, are often &#;concentrated&#; at the mine to increase the percentage of valuable material and reduce transportation costs. This concentrate is then further processed to recover the valuable material. For metal ores, the processes include smelting, refining and finishing. The concentration step typically generates large quantities of wet, very fine materials often containing various residues of processing chemicals. These &#;tailings&#; are difficult to manage because of the volumes and physical characteristics and have been involved in a number of significant pollution incidents. Tailings are often a major challenge at abandoned mines because they are frequently unstable.

The technology for smelting and refining processes has improved considerably in recent years, particularly in relation to control of dust emissions and corrosive fumes, but older facilities often lack the proper equipment and technology to prevent the release of toxic chemicals into the environment. 

It is estimated that the health of nearly 7 million people is at risk from mining and ore processing locations in the countries in which Pure Earth has done investigations. These exposures result in 450,000 to 2.6 million DALYs, depending on the disability weights. Limitations in the existing methodology and gaps in underlying science mean that the analysis relies almost entirely on health outcomes associated with lead and chromium. Therefore, other substances, particularly metals such as mercury and cadmium, are not included in the current figures and the real DALY impact of this industry is likely much larger. 

Key Pollutants

The most hazardous pollutants reported at Pure Earth mining and ore processing sites are lead, chromium, arsenic, cadmium and mercury. The key pollutants are identified as lead and chromium based on their respective DALYs impact while mercury is the top exposure risk in the population. Other pollutants that may be present at the mining sites include radionuclides, cyanide and other heavy metals. 

Exposure Pathways

The source of exposure for the population from mining and ore processing is primarily from waste products in both active and legacy pollution sites. These waste products include wastewater, waste rock (containing metal and ore), tailings, process solutions and processed ore. At abandoned or poorly closed mining sites, tailings and improperly stored waste can pollute ground and surface water, as well drastically affect agricultural activities. In poorly managed mining and processing plants, untreated waste water, slag and solid waste are often directly dumped into surface waters or may accumulate near the mines. Further environmental issues can arise as metals may be washed along with soil leading to heavy erosion and runoff contamination. The contaminated soil and water may adversely impact agricultural, food and drinking water systems. 

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