Name: Sarah Ryker: Earth MRI has covered nearly 30% of the nation with magnetic and radiometric geophysical surveys. The program has collected other essential geoscience data and has had broader impacts in energy and groundwater resources, hazards, and infrastructure.
Uploaded: 2026-09-16T14:00:00+00:00
Duration: 16 s
Description: Earth MRI has covered nearly 30% of the nation with magnetic and radiometric geophysical surveys. The program has collected other essential geoscience data and has had broader impacts in energy and groundwater resources, hazards, and infrastructure.

0:16

Sarah Ryker

63:55 - 64:12

“Earth MRI has covered nearly 30% of the nation with magnetic and radiometric geophysical surveys. The program has collected other essential geoscience data and has had broader impacts in energy and groundwater resources, hazards, and infrastructure.”

Speaker: Sarah Ryker
Timestamp: 63:55 – 64:12
Transcript: Senate Energy and Natural Resources (Murkowski): Hearings to examine S.5402, to extend authorizations for aquatic ecosystem restoration projects, multi-benefit watershed health projects, and WaterSMART grants, S.456, to amend the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to expedite geothermal exploration and development in previously studied or developed areas, S.1568, to amend the Energy Policy and Conservation Act to modify standards for general service lamps, S.2644, to require the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a special resource study to assess the suitability and feasibility of establishing the Camden Battlefield area in the State of South Carolina as a unit of the National Park System, S.4103 and H.R. 2709, bills to improve the health and resiliency of giant sequoias, S.4116, to advance next-generation geothermal electricity generation demonstration projects in new regions, S.4166, to amend the Energy Policy and Conservation Act to require States to include supporting the physical security, cybersecurity, and resilience of local distribution systems in State energy security plans, S.4023, to establish the America's Living Library Project, S.4489, to authorize the Dry-Redwater Regional Water Authority System in the State of Montana, S.4787, to expedite resolution of certain administrative proceedings at the Department of the Interior, S.4846, to amend the United States-Mexico Transboundary Aquifer Assessment Act to reauthorize the United States-Mexico transboundary aquifer assessment program, S.4870, to amend the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act to reauthorize the Earth Mapping Resources Initiative, S.4955, to amend the Act of May 17, 1954, to revise the boundary of Gateway Arch National Park, S.5048, to amend the Federal Power Act to modernize the hydropower licensing process, S.5101, to prohibit the Secretary of the Interior from taking any action to expand the Mid-Continent Limestone Quarry located near Glenwood Springs, Colorado, S.5169, to expand the boundaries of the Shenandoah Valley Battlefields National Historic District, to recognize and enhance the Shenandoah Valley Battlefields National Historic District partnership model, S.5338, to amend the Energy Policy and Conservation Act to prohibit the Secretary of Energy from prescribing any new or amended energy conservation standards for a product that is not technologically feasible and economically justified, S.5293, to direct the Secretary of Agriculture and the Secretary of the Interior to establish prepositioning protocols for aerial wildfire suppression for early-season fine fuel wildland fires, S.5352, to amend the Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation Act and the Water Desalination Act of 1996 to reauthorize certain desalination programs, S.5359, to direct the Secretary of Agriculture to convey to Pennington County, South Dakota, certain National Forest System land, S.5360, to amend the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act to reauthorize the Rural and Municipal Utility Advanced Cybersecurity Grant and Technical Assistance Program, S.5374, to facilitate the conveyance of certain land in Bonners Ferry, Idaho, platted under section 2387 of the Revised Statutes, H.R.900, to direct the Director of the United States Geological Survey to establish a program to map zones that are at greater risk of sinkhole formation, H.R.1682, to amend the Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act to provide for lifetime National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Passes for family members of members of the Armed Forces who lost their lives while serving their country.
Community: Alaska News
Captured at: September 16, 2026

From the transcript

The USGS launched Earth MRI in 2019 in response to President Trump's issuance of Executive Order 13817, which called for modernizing geological, geophysical, and topographic mapping in areas with potential deposits of critical mineral resources. Earth MRI's partnerships with state geological surveys, other federal agencies including the Department of Energy, and the private sector have led directly to the first national map of areas with critical mineral potential. This helps the USGS prioritize new national— new data collection efforts needed to quantify mineral resource potential and provide stakeholders a shared understanding of the potential distribution of critical mineral resources. Earth MRI has covered nearly 30% of the nation with magnetic and radiometric geophysical surveys. The program has collected other essential geoscience data and has had broader impacts in energy and groundwater resources, hazards, and infrastructure.

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