Geologist warns prospect of a mineral bonanza in Greenland is a mirage

[TomWilm]

3. ... prospect of a mineral bonanza in Greenland is a mirage

... Minik Rosing, a native Greenlander and professor at the University of Copenhagen, ... has spent years studying the territory's terrain. He argues that the assumptions about getting rich quickly from untapped resources in Greenland are akin to planning to get wealthy by playing the lottery. The widespread lack of detailed knowledge about geology, mining, and minerals has resulted in, he says, an almost "mythological misunderstanding" of what rare earth elements truly are.

"In geology, we say what characterizes rare earths is that they are neither rare nor earth. They are a group of metals that are commonly occurring in many rock types, and there are large known deposits of them throughout the world," Rosing explained to 60 Minutes.

Nothing points to a special concentration of minerals and rare earths in Greenland, and there are many places in the world where minerals are easier and cheaper to obtain, such as the USA. ...