The CRMA upstream stage where raw materials are removed from their source, before processing or recycling changes the material form.
Extraction is the first physical supply stage that can create project, site, source, and capacity evidence. It matters because upstream evidence is different from processing outputs, recycled-content claims, or finished-product documentation.
The EU Critical Raw Materials Act definition fixes the upstream source boundary. The source-specific boundary helps separate mine/source records and Union extraction-capacity claims from later transformation and manufacturing records. North America critical-minerals context: U.S. sources use designation/list logic under 30 U.S.C. § 1606 and the Federal Register 2022 list; Canada Income Tax Act section 127.49 uses qualifying material and qualifying mineral activity for a tax-credit context. Keep these source layers separate from EU CRMA critical/strategic raw material and EU conflict-minerals definitions.
Regulation (EU) 2024/1252 establishing a framework for ensuring a secure and sustainable supply of critical raw materials
the extraction of ores, minerals and plant products from their original source as a main product or as a by-product, including from mineral occurrence underground, mineral occurrence under and in water, and from brine and trees
CRMA Article 2 source-specific definition layer.
Reference: Article 2, point 4
Reviewed public draft page. Aligns with CRMA raw-material priority policy: source-bound category boundaries, concrete implementation objects, and evidence-focused commentary.
Implementation records should capture project or site record, source material, extraction method, capacity figure, operator, location, permit/source document, output material, assessment period, and links to downstream processing, strategic-project, or product evidence.
Extraction evidence needs to be traced from source site to later material records without pretending that extraction proves processing, recycled content, or product-level traceability. Clear stage routing prevents upstream capacity claims from being reused as downstream compliance proof.