RECENT CRITICAL MINERALS PROJECTS IN MISSOURI

Missouri is one of the top 10 mineral producing states and has known occurrences of 29 of the 50 mineral commodities identified as critical to the U.S. economy and national security. Recent critical minerals projects in Missouri began in 2014 with USGS/MGS-supported projects related to Precambrian hosted IOA/IOCG deposits that contain known REEs and cobalt. The projects include: a structure contour map of the Proterozoic surface in southeastern Missouri; a compilation map of exposed Precambrian; and a 1:24,000 scale bedrock map of Precambrian surface exposures in an area with exposed IOA/IOCG mineralization in the St. Francois Mountains. USGS Earth MRI (EMRI) funding has supported mapping of the Fredericktown 7.5’ quadrangle, completed fall 2022, and includes petrographic and geochemical analyses. This project area contains known cobalt-nickel mineralization. A second EMRI project was completed on the Ordovician Maquoketa Shale that sampled the formation at outcrops and in cores for REE-enriched sedimentary phosphate. An additional project with the Department of Energy, four surrounding states, and one tribal nation (CORE-CM) began in 2021 with the intent to study Pennsylvanian coal strata for potential REE concentrations. This collaborative effort is collecting new information and correlating existing data across the Cherokee-Forest City Basin.

New projects in 2022 and 2023 included six additional EMRI-funded quadrangles and one STATEMAP quadrangle to be mapped near the Fredericktown quadrangle. Mapping will address basement and bedrock exposures, with accompanying petrographic and geochemical analyses. An EMRI-funded study into Pennsylvanian strata examining black shales for REE potential will have Missouri, along with six other states, investigating and collecting samples for XRF analysis. An EMRI-funded Mine Waste project was also awarded to look at tailings at Pea Ridge.

Investments through existing and new federal programs and increases in state resources are accelerating our understanding of the location and quantities of these minerals in Missouri and surrounding regions. These projects also improve preservation and access to physical and digital collections and are helping our customers in areas such as energy, critical minerals characterization, and infrastructure development.