Electric Car Battery Mining Operation Allegedly Hid Evidence It Was Leaching Dangerous Chemical Into Water System

4 comments

1. Not surprising. I’ve seen some of the shape files of Chile’s lithium mining before and after operations a few years ago. Even if they managed to follow something similar to RCRA, the environmental impact of mining lithium or nickle even completely changes the entire region.

2. Some sort of rage baity headline, that one.

3. Just take a step back— whoever writes these articles: the entire extractive industry is a mess. Fossil fuels, minerals— all of it is highly polluting. Fossil fuels are especially damaging; they pollute throughout their entire lifecycle, from extraction to combustion, when they’re turned into harmful gases. Mineral mining is harmful too, but at least it doesn’t leak into the atmosphere and stay there for thousands of years. If one truly care about the environment: build compact, efficient cities; ditch cars; make friends; and live a simple life.

4. Oh good grief. You don’t mine electric car batteries, or iPhones, or fitbits. You extract minerals that could then be used for batteries for many different items.
   And pretty much all mining companies pull the same crap. They try to minimise costs by cutting corners on environmental precautions, and the operating company is abandoned with all the profits siphoned off before they have to spend money on cleanup. Gold mining has used either cyanide or mercury for many years for refining. Where’s the headline about mining wedding rings?

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