Newcrest Mining (ASX:NCM) is the one Australian mining major exposed to the greatest level of country risk with 63% of its assets situated in nation-states categorized as 'very high-risk' by analysts.
A report indicating weak sentiment on the part of Australian mining companies would appear to substantiate warnings that Australia's flourishing resources sector is headed for a slowdown.
Bongani Mbindwane, CEO of South African junior explorer Platfields (SJ:PLL), has written an open letter to South Africa's mineral resources minister calling for direct assistance in dealing with the platinum sector's dire condition.
The USA's largest rare earth producer Molycorp (NYSE:MCP) is mounting a credible challenge to Chinese rare earth dominance by dramatically scaling up output and potentially increasing its global market share to 30% from 4% at present.
While their counterparts in Australia are having nothing to do with it, some wonkish types in the Republican Party are floating the idea of a carbon tax.
Phys.org says damage to streams and rivers in southern West Virginia is substantial due to mining, and even small operations can have a large impact on wildlife.