Streamlining Critical Mineral Permitting Act

This bill would let certain energy facilities get a temporary OK to handle hazardous waste while their full permit is still under review by the Environmental Protection Agency. It adds facilities that process or refine “critical energy resources” to the list of sites that can receive these interim permits. A “critical energy resource” is any energy resource the Energy Department says is essential to the U.S. energy system and has a supply chain that could be easily disrupted. A “critical energy resource facility” is a plant that processes or refines those resources. The temporary permit would last until the EPA makes a final decision.

In everyday terms, this aims to speed up projects that handle key energy materials, while still requiring a final safety review. That could mean faster timelines for facilities that deal with things like important minerals used in energy, but those facilities would still need full approval later.

Key points

• Who is affected: Owners and operators of facilities that process or refine critical energy resources.
• What changes: They can receive an interim hazardous waste permit while waiting for the EPA’s final decision.
• How “critical” is defined: The Energy Department decides what counts as a critical energy resource based on importance to the energy system and how vulnerable its supply chain is.
• When: This takes effect by changing the existing waste law once enacted; no specific dates are given in the text.