Mining the moon is a possibility

Mining the moon has become a serious possibility due to the fact that the moon contains a surplus of water ice at its north and south poles.  It is projected that the moon has approximately 1.6 billion tonnes of water ice and "It is this, more than anything else," Cornfield writes, "that has kindled interest in mining the Moon, for where there is ice, there is fuel."  Shackleton Energy Company plans to utilize the moon’s water ice by extracting it and turning it into rocket fuel.  Then, they would be able to create fuel stations in earth’s orbit.  They would essentially be creating a gas station in space.  However, water ice isn’t the only thing the moon has to offer.  The moon also contains rare-earth elements and China has taken advantage of these elements since they touched down on the moon in December of 2013.  "All interested parties agree that the Moon -- one step from Earth -- is the essential first toehold for humankind's diaspora to the stars," Corfield concludes.

Citation: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/02/150202114634.htm