They did not indicate how much total waste was there other than...

They did not indicate how much total waste was there other than to say " two waste piles of gypsum, left over from decades of phosphate mining" Phosphate is not expensive so it does not pay to mine it unless it is highly concentrated. With phosphates removed it is possible the REE content is close to Lynas's Concentrate and most is already been process part way. To set up a mine is about 3 years. To set up Oxide production is 5 years. Financing in to days market is not easy.

I Thank you for the article it was interesting. As far as investing I will ignore it. I worry about profits for next 6~ 18 months and this will have no impact till long after that, if it ever does.

My investment philosophy is simple keep an eye on the future but worry about short term revenue and profits when thinking about buying and selling. Every stock I buy I hope to hold for many years. I will sell any time the profits look like they are at risk. JMO but this is not worth thinking much about right now if you are or want to be a Lynas investor.