Less mining? I hate to break it to you, but solar panels are manufactured with mined quartz and not recycled. Lithium ion batteries are built with mined lithium, cobalt, nickel, copper, and manganese, and I have yet to hear of any manufacturer using reclaimed materials from recycled batteries. If you’ve never seen a lithium mine, it’s worth a gander. Not saying we shouldn’t move toward cleaner energy solutions, but let’s be honest about our current flawed approach.
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Less mining? I hate to break it to you, but solar panels are manufactured with mined quartz and not recycled. Lithium ion batteries are built with mined lithium, cobalt, nickel, copper, and manganese, and I have yet to hear of any manufacturer using reclaimed materials from recycled batteries. If you’ve never seen a lithium mine, it’s worth a gander. Not saying we shouldn’t move toward cleaner energy solutions, but let’s be honest about our current flawed approach.