Governing Critical-Mineral Circularity Across Distance: A Telecoupled Land-System Perspective on the European Union and China

Critical-mineral strategies are often promoted as circular economy policies, but circularity metrics do not reveal the locations of land disturbance, processing impacts, recovery improvements or governance authority. Here we present a telecoupled circular land governance framework to examine the differing policy trajectories of the European Union (EU) and China. From the land system and telecoupling literature, published research on mineral supply chains and recycling, and an original compilation of ten selected policy instruments adopted by 30 June 2026, with their legal status and application schedules distinguished, we analyze four linked systems: mining lands; processing and production facilities; use markets; and end-of-life recovery infrastructure. Our analysis highlights divergent but interrelated control points. EU policies connect product-level due diligence, recycled content and information requirements with domestic capacity targets; Chinese policies bring together state-directed industrial governance with growing traceability, extended producer responsibility and recovery regulations. The comparison identifies conditions under which recycling gains may coexist with displaced burdens or growing primary demand. We suggest a four-part combination of governance levers: spatially explicit footprint accounting; interoperable chain-of-custody information; place-based safeguards and benefit sharing; and demand-side sufficiency combined with recycling. The framework redefines circularity as an allocation problem across connected land systems and identifies testable propositions for comparative research and policy evaluation.