2000 Minnesota Statutes

     93.002 Mineral coordinating committee. 

    Subdivision 1.    Establishment.  The mineral 
 coordinating committee is established to plan for diversified 
 mineral development.  The mineral coordinating committee 
 consists of the director of the minerals division of the 
 department of natural resources, the deputy commissioner of the 
 Minnesota pollution control agency, the director of United 
 Steelworkers of America, district 11, or the director's 
 designee, the commissioner of the iron range resources and 
 rehabilitation board, the director of the Minnesota geological 
 survey, the dean of the University of Minnesota institute of 
 technology, the director of the natural resources research 
 institute, and three individuals appointed by the governor for a 
 four-year term, one each representing the iron ore and taconite, 
 the nonferrous metallic minerals, and the industrial minerals 
 industries within the state.  The director of the minerals 
 division of the department of natural resources shall serve as 
 chair.  A member of the committee may designate another person 
 of the member's organization to act in the member's place.  The 
 commissioner of natural resources shall provide staff and 
 administrative services necessary for the committee's activities.

    The mineral coordinating committee is encouraged to solicit 
 and receive advice from representatives of the United States 
 Geological Survey and the United States Environmental Protection 
 Agency. 

    Subd. 2.    Mineral diversification plan.  The mineral 
 coordinating committee shall prepare and adopt a ten-year plan 
 for mineral diversification.  The plan must include a strategy 
 to: 

    (1) increase the knowledge of the state's mineral 
 potential; 

    (2) stimulate the development of mineral resources in the 
 state; and 

    (3) promote basic minerals research. 

    The plan must also include a two-year plan that establishes 
 funding priorities for the minerals programs under subdivision 
 3.  The funding priorities must be updated every two years. 

    Subd. 3.    Minerals programs.  The mineral 
 diversification programs must address at least the following:  
 aeromagnetic surveys, glacial till geochemistry surveys, 
 geologic drilling and mapping, LMIC minerals database, drill 
 core examination and assay, industrial minerals characterization 
 and research, bedrock geochemistry, nonferrous minerals 
 research, environmental research and protection, reclamation 
 studies, economic evaluation of mineral resources, improved 
 geophysical and remote sensing base, acquisition of sampling 
 equipment and analyses, determination of mineral rights 
 ownership, ferrous minerals research, evaluation of mineral 
 resource occurrence, evaluation of value added processes, ore 
 deposit modeling, and basic mineral research.  

    Subd. 4.    Submission of plan and funding priorities.  
 (a) The minerals coordinating committee shall submit the 
 minerals diversification plan to the legislature by December 31, 
 1987. 

    (b) By January 15 of each odd-numbered year, the minerals 
 coordinating committee shall submit the two-year funding 
 priority plan required under subdivision 2 to the chairs of the 
 house appropriations and environment and natural resources 
 committees and the chairs of the senate finance and environment 
 and natural resources committees.  

    HIST: 1987 c 386 art 7 s 2; 1993 c 113 art 2 s 2,3; 1998 c 401 
 s 32 

*   NOTE: See section 15.059, subdivision 5a, for expiration of 
*committee.