Rare Earth Mining Taking Heavy Toll in Myanmar’s Kachin, Groups Say

Hein Htoo Zan

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Kachin-based environmentalists are sounding the alarm over the rapid growth of rare earth mining in conflict-affected Kachin State, fueled by high global demand for the elements, with a UK-based campaign group amplifying their concerns in a new report.

In its report released on Thursday, Global Witness revealed an alarming expansion of heavy rare earth mining in Myanmar. It said the world’s dependence on heavy rare earths from Kachin has rapidly increased and is having devastating impacts on communities and the environment.

The UK-based campaign group said Myanmar is now the single largest source of heavy rare earth elements globally. Currently in demand as part of the global energy transition, heavy rare earths are vital ingredients for permanent magnets that are used in electric vehicles and wind turbines.

In Myanmar, most rare earth mining operations are located in Kachin State and the Wa Self-Administrative Region in Shan State.

In Kachin State, the operations are centered on Myanmar military-controlled Chipwi Township in a remote northeastern corner of the state, and in Mai Ja Yang town controlled by the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) in Momauk Township in the state’s southeast.

In Kachin State’s Special Region 1, controlled by militias aligned with the junta’s military, the number of mining sites increased by more than 40 percent between 2021 and 2023, according to Global Witness’s report.