Critical Raw Material Extraction in the EU: Enhancing Competitiveness Amid Social Challenges

The article provides insight into the paradox of the EU’s climate policy increasingly dependent on various raw materials while implementing its carbon neutrality goals to achieve energy resource self-sufficiency. The absence of domestic production of critical raw materials also undermines the region’s industrial competitiveness. In response, the EU has launched a new strategic initiative focused on securing critical raw material supply chains, including the revival of domestic mining activities. Despite the European Commission’s strong emphasis on the need for sustainable mining, meeting sustainability requirements is challenging in practice, and the extraction of critical materials is often associated with environmental damage and the disruption of local communities’ traditional habitats. Consequently, the development of new deposits is frequently delayed or obstructed by public opposition. The EU faces a complex dilemma, balancing the strategic supply security with the environmental concerns of affected local communities. By facilitating mining companies, the European Commission effectively legitimizes the circumvention of local resistance under the guise of public interest. Such manifestations are likely to fuel social tensions and Euroscepticism. An alternative pathway to domestic mining revival could involve prioritizing investment in recycling of critical raw materials. Such an approach, a slower but more sustainable one, aligns with the EU’s green transition and circular economy principles, while avoiding the social and environmental conflicts associated with new extraction initiatives.