Subd. 1. Establishment.

The mineral coordinating committee is established to plan for diversified mineral development. The mineral coordinating committee consists of the director of the minerals division of the department of natural resources, the deputy commissioner of the Minnesota pollution control agency, the director of the Minnesota geological survey, the dean of the University of Minnesota institute of technology, and the director of the natural resources research institute. The director of the minerals division of the department of natural resources shall serve as chair. A member of the committee may designate another person of the member's organization to act in the member's place. The commissioner of natural resources shall provide staff and administrative services necessary for the committee's activities.

The mineral coordinating committee is encouraged to solicit and receive advice from representatives of the United States Bureau of Mines, the United States Geological Survey, and the United States Environmental Protection Agency.

Subd. 2. Mineral diversification plan.

The mineral coordinating committee shall prepare and adopt a ten-year plan for mineral diversification. The plan must include a strategy to:

1. (1) increase the knowledge of the state's mineral potential;
2. (2) stimulate the development of mineral resources in the state; and

3. (3) promote basic minerals research.

   The plan must also include a two-year plan that establishes funding priorities for the minerals programs under subdivision 3. The funding priorities must be updated every two years.

Subd. 3. Minerals programs.

The mineral diversification programs must address at least the following: aeromagnetic surveys, glacial till geochemistry surveys, geologic drilling and mapping, LMIC minerals database, drill core examination and assay, industrial minerals characterization and research, bedrock geochemistry, nonferrous minerals research, environmental research and protection, reclamation studies, economic evaluation of mineral resources, improved geophysical and remote sensing base, acquisition of sampling equipment and analyses, determination of mineral rights ownership, ferrous minerals research, evaluation of mineral resource occurrence, evaluation of value added processes, ore deposit modeling, and basic mineral research.

Subd. 4. Submission of plan and funding priorities.

1. (a) The minerals coordinating committee shall submit the minerals diversification plan to the legislature by December 31, 1987.
2. (b) By January 15 of each odd-numbered year, the minerals coordinating committee shall submit the two-year funding priority plan required under subdivision 2 to the chairs of the house appropriations and environment and natural resources committees and the chairs of the senate finance and environment and natural resources committees.