Greenland parliament ends ban on rare-earth mining

On 31 October 2013, the parliament of Greenland voted 15-14 to end that country's decades long ban on the mining of rare-earth minerals. This allows Australian and Chinese companies to mine uranium in Greenland. Melting of the arctic ice cap has increased marine access to Greenland and made mining there more economically attractive. Environmentalists warn that the uranium mining poses unacceptable threats to the fragile arctic environment.

Source
'World roundup', The Guardian Weekly (Manchester, UK), Nov 1-7, 2013.