It's nearly impossible to mine lanthanides in the west. The problem is that they are invariably associated with thorium, and thorium has been declared (in 1980

It's nearly impossible to mine lanthanides in the west. The problem is that they are invariably associated with thorium, and thorium has been declared (in 1980 or thereabouts) to be a source material for nuclear explosives, even though it really isn't. Nobody wants to deal with the regulations around that, so all the lanthanide mines and refineries closed.