The red clay hills of southern China might seem an unlikely spot for a global tug of war. But that is exactly what is playing out there as Beijing cracks down on the mining of rare earths, the 17 elements crucial to the electronics used in everyday life.

　　中国南方的红粘土山可能看上去不太可能成为全球激烈竞争的的战场。但这正是摆在人们面前的事实，因为中国政府正对稀土采矿行业进行整治。稀土是17种化学元素的总称，对人们在日常生活中使用的电子产品至关重要。

　　In recent weeks, some of the mines gouged out of hillsides in Jiangxi province have been broken up, others mothballed, as China, which controls nearly all the world’s rare earths production, tightens environmental rules governing the industry. The move, which will cut supply, will send shivers through the global rare-earths supply chain.

　　最近几周，在江西省山坡上开凿的一些稀土矿被捣毁，另一些则被封存，因为中国政府正收紧管理该行业的环境规定。中国控制着全球几乎全部稀土产量，此举将削减供应，令全球稀土供应链不寒而栗。

　　Rare earths are crucial to everything from polishing glass to generating electricity from wind or making a BlackBerry vibrate – or guiding a missile.

　　稀土对于很多产品至关重要，从玻璃抛光，到风力发电，或制造黑莓(BlackBerry)振动器。甚至导弹导航。

　　Last year, China slashed export quotas and briefly suspended shipments to Japan after a diplomatic dispute, prompting protests from Washington and Tokyo and sparking concerns for supply. Japan and other countries responded by seeking alternative sources.

　　去年，与日本发生外交争端后，中国大幅削减了稀土的出口配额，并暂停了对日出口，这引发了美国和日本的抗议，并令外界对稀土供应感到担忧。日本和其它国家的应对举措是寻找替代来源。

　　While Chinese officials cite environmental concern over how rare earths are produced, some industry executives say protectionism and a desire for a bigger role in the lucrative sector for state-owned miners is also a determining factor behind the clampdown.

　　尽管中国官员给出的理由是对于稀土生产过程的环境担忧，但一些行业高管表示，保护主义以及国有矿商希望在这个高盈利行业发挥更大作用的愿望也是中国政府整治行动的一个决定性因素。

　　Analysts believe the clean-up programme will reduce rare earths output this year and tighten the market, though exact figures are difficult to ascertain because of smuggling.

　　分析人士认为，整治行动将减少今年的稀土产量并导致市场收紧，不过由于走私活动，很难确定准确的数据。

　　“I would expect a shortage developing in the next two to three months,” says Constantine Karayannopoulos, chief executive of rare earths producer Neo Materials.

　　稀土生产商Neo Material Technologies首席执行官康斯坦丁·卡拉亚诺保洛斯(Constantine Karayannopoulos)表示：“我预计，未来两到三个月，（稀土供应）将出现短缺。”

　　Over the past year, companies have been busy finding ways to use fewer rare earths. New mines in the US and Australia are set to come on line, but not soon enough to avoid a global squeeze.

　　过去一年，企业一直忙于寻找减少稀土使用的方法。美国和澳大利亚的新矿山即将投产，但其速度不足以避免全球市场紧缩。

　　Parts of southern China, including Jiangxi province, are at the heart of the crackdown. Red clays in the region are rich in “heavy” rare earths, the most valuable and scarce elements. The mining has for decades been a cottage industry as farmers have learnt how to leach the elements out of the clay in their back yards.

　　包括江西省在内的华南部分省份处于行业整治计划的震中。该地区的红粘土中富含“重”稀土元素，这些化学元素价值最高也最稀缺。几十年来，稀土采矿一直是一种家庭手工业，因为农民已知道如何在自家后院从红粘土中“浸”出稀土元素。

　　“My brother and I went into rare earths in 1987,” recalls one motorcycle taxi driver in the town of Xinfeng. “It was tough to make any money. We had no technology and prices were so low back then.”

　　“我哥哥和我是在1987年进入稀土行业的，”江西信丰县一名摩的司机回忆说，“那时赚钱很困难。我们没有技术，价格也很低。”

　　As its economy opened in the 1980s, China came to dominate production as it could mine rare earths cheaply – often at great environmental cost. Competing US mines were pushed out of business.

　　随着上世纪80年代中国经济开放，中国开始主宰稀土生产，因为中国能够以廉价的成本开采稀土，但这通常是以巨大的环境成本为代价的。与中国竞争的美国稀土矿商被迫退出了该行业。

　　The countryside around Xinfeng is dotted with hundreds of small open-pit mines into which miners pour water and chemicals, producing a sludge rich in rare earths. Technically, the province has only 88 licences for rare earths mines –soon to be whittled down to one mega-licence – but small producers have typically eluded Beijing’s reach.

　　在信丰周边农村，数百家小型露天稀土矿星罗棋布，矿工们正在往矿石上泼洒水和化学制剂，从而产生一种富含稀土的油泥。严格意义上来说，江西省只有88张稀土开采许可证——而且很快将被削减至一张“超级”许可证——但小型生产商通常都能避开中国政府的管控。

　　Farmers in Jiangxi have mastered the art of these small “leach” mines, where high-potency fertiliser is often used to dissolve the rare earth. They have left the land scarred by barren tailings ponds and eroded hilltops.

　　江西的农民们已经掌握了这些小型“浸”矿的生产工艺，高效化肥通常用来溶解稀土。留下的是布满疤痕的土地，随处可见贫瘠的尾矿池和遭到腐蚀的山顶。

　　Beijing has launched campaigns over the years to clean up the mines, but none as serious as that now under way. “It used to be that if you had a relative in government or were well connected, you could still mine [even during crackdowns],” said a miner in Tongmu village. “But today it is yidaoqie – one knife cuts all.”

　　中国政府在过去几年里发起了数次整治矿区的行动，但没有一次有此次这么严肃认真。“过去的情况是，如果你有亲戚在政府部门上班或者有很硬的背景，那么（即使在整改期间）你还是能继续采矿，”桐木村一位前矿主表示，“但这次是一刀切。”

　　Near where he stands, the charred remains of a small rare earths pit are witness to the clampdown. Officials raided the mine this month and burned its equipment so it could not be put back into use, the miner says. Government notices on local television promise a reward of RMB20,000 ($3,130) for anyone reporting an illegal rare earths mine, as well as pay-outs for turning in unauthorised dealers.

　　离他站的地方不远，一个不大的稀土坑中烧焦的残余物见证了这场整改行动。矿主表示，官员们本月突击了这家稀土矿，焚毁了设备，因此这里没法恢复生产了。政府在当地电视台上发布通告，承诺对举报非法稀土矿者予以人民币2万元（合3130美元）的奖励，对检举不法交易者也会予以金钱奖励。

　　Beijing announced a nationwide rare earths mine inspection campaign this month after a series of steadily tightening rules since the start of the year. Its vision is eventually to consolidate control of China’s rare earths industry under three big state-owned miners – Baogang, Chinalco and Minmetals – but that will prove an uphill battle.

　　中国政府本月宣布对全国范围内的稀土矿进行检查，自今年初以来，中国发布了一系列愈发严格的环保规定。政府的构想是整合对中国稀土行业的控制，最终将控制权收归三家大型国有矿商所有，它们是包钢(Baogang)、中铝(Chinalco)和五矿(Minmetals)，但这注定将是一场艰苦的战斗。

　　Jiangxi is considered more strictly regulated than neighbouring provinces, but it is not difficult to find mines still operating. Record high prices for rare earths this year have fuelled smuggling – miners say they can make RMB30,000 from a single tonne of mixed, unprocessed rare earths. Often, the largest mines are owned by the same local government officials in charge of enforcing the shutdowns.

　　江西据信受到了比相邻省份更为严格的监管，但找到仍在生产的稀土矿并非难事。今年稀土创纪录的高价格刺激了走私行为——矿主表示，卖出1吨含有杂质、未加工的稀土，可获利3万元人民币。通常说来，最大的一些矿场的所有者恰恰就是当地政府中负责执行关停行动的官员。

　　Some mines are poised to reopen once Beijing looks the other way. In the forests near the hamlet of Anxi, a new rare-earth mine lies spread out under the evening sky. It was completed just before the crackdown and has never been operated.

　　一旦中国政府开始睁一只眼闭一只眼，某些稀土矿就会重新开工生产。在安西镇附近的森林中，一个新建的稀土矿场在夜空下向四周延伸开来。这家矿场建成于整改行动开始之前不久，还未曾开工生产。

　　“You never know when government policies could change,” said a former miner, looking out over the pit. “This time next year, this mine could easily be producing.”

　　“你永远不知道政府的政策什么时候可能转向，”一位前矿主望着矿坑说。“明年这个时间，这个矿场很可能就开工了。”