If you've ever made a call on a cell phone, driven a hybrid vehicle, or installed a compact flourescent lightbulb, you've had direct contact with rare earth elements.
97 per cent of those elements come from China, but Saskatchewan has a huge untapped supply. And that's what Great Western Minerals Group is attempting to capitalize on.
Rare earth minerals expert Jack Lifton says big things lie ahead for the junior mining company.
"Within two or two and a half years, this will be a very significant company in the Canadian mining industry," he says. "It's going to be your one-stop shop for heavy rare earths. And you know what, it's going to be the world's one-stop shop."
Many of the elements are used in "green" technologies like wind power generators and batteries. Lifton says that could make Saskatchewan a big player in the environmental movement.
http://www.newstalk980.com/story/20090910/22185
