What do jet fighters, wind turbines, smartphones and advanced medical imaging have in common?
They all rely on rare earth elements (REEs)—a group of minerals that power much of the modern world.
Securing a reliable supply of these materials has become a growing priority for the United States. One new initiative, known as Project Vault, is being developed by the U.S. government and the private sector to build a strategic stockpile of critical minerals. The goal is simple: ensure American manufacturers have access to essential materials even when global supply chains are disrupted.
That effort is drawing attention to a new domestic supply.
For generations, phosphate has helped farmers grow the crops that feed America. In the process, phosphate production creates a reusable material called phosphogypsum that has been stored in large ”gypstacks.”
What many people don’t realize is that these stacks contain valuable rare earth elements used in advanced technology, energy systems and national defense.
In fact, experts say the REEs already present in Florida’s phosphogypsum stacks could support U.S. supply chains for decades.
These elements were always present in phosphate rock, but historically they were not the focus of production. Today, new research is exploring how they can be responsibly recovered from material that has already been collected over many years.
That means a potential new source of rare earth elements may already exist above ground, ready for scientists and innovators to unlock.
As initiatives like Project Vault look for ways to strengthen America’s supply of critical minerals, resources already present in gypstacks could play an important role.
Turning yesterday’s byproducts into tomorrow’s strategic resources is exactly the kind of innovation that helps strengthen America’s supply chains and support the technologies our economy depends on.
Watch our short explainer video:
What Are Rare Earth Elements? →
