Let’s see, first they said ethanol was a great answer for fossil fuels. Nope, bad for the environment. Then they wanted to push diesel vehicles. Nope, also bad. Then they pushed hybrids hard (not a bad idea, IMO). But, that wasn’t good enough, so now they’re pushing EVs, which most people cannot afford, and
As demand for the lightweight metal rises, the mining impacts are “increasingly affecting communities where this harmful extraction takes place, jeopardising their access to water,” @foe_us says.
— Euronews Green (@euronewsgreen) February 2, 2022
From the article
Lithium extraction fields in South America have been captured by an aerial photographer in stunning high definition.
But while the images may be breathtaking to look at, they represent the dark side of our swiftly electrifying world.
Lithium represents a route out of our reliance on fossil fuel production. As the lightest known metal on the planet, it is now widely used in electric devices from mobile phones and laptops, to cars and aircraft.
Lithium-ion batteries are most famous for powering electric vehicles, which are set to account for up to 60 per cent of new car sales by 2030. The battery of a Tesla Model S, for example, uses around 12 kg of lithium.
These batteries are the key to lightweight, rechargeable power. As it stands, demand for lithium is unprecedented and many say it is crucial in order to transition to renewables.
However, this doesn’t come without a cost – mining the chemical element can be harmful to the environment.
And what kinds of problems? Well, it can cause air contamination and
Any type of resource extraction is harmful to the planet. This is because removing these raw materials can result in soil degradation, water shortages, biodiversity loss, damage to ecosystem functions and an increase in global warming.
Oops.
