Lithium batteries. Most of us will be familiar with the term, if only for the way in which airlines nowadays expressly tell you to not put them in your checked luggage. They could explode mid-flight, release toxic fumes and incite electrical fires.
Those who have done a bit more research will know that these commonly house in our personal electronics, including smartphones, tablets and laptops. This makes them a crucial element of today’s world and therefore susceptible to a steady production flow. Yet lithium batteries can also be found in e-bikes and electric cars, which are definitely on the rise.
In short? Lithium batteries power a significant part of our lives and will continue to do so even more in years to come.
Environmental costs lithium battery production
Unfortunately, they are not exactly helping us in our struggle to replace fossil fuels with cleaner alternatives. The environmental costs of lithium battery production are huge, with entire communities polluted by the toxic metals that make up its core components. Lithium mines are located in some of the world’s poorest regions, making it a particularly harrowing dilemma.
Just a couple of years ago, back in 2016, the Ganzizhou Rongda lithium mine, located in China, experienced a toxic chemical leak. As a result, the Liqi river was polluted and ecosystems all the way up to the Tibetan plateau were destroyed. Dead animals floated in the water, both fish and livestock depending on this river for their water supply.
Reliance on lithium
It was not an isolated incident. In the past few years, there have been numerous instances of lithium mining causing irreversible damage to the environment and those living in it. Ironic, considering how many people are looking at it for its ability to help ‘green up’ the world. Electric cars rely on it, with Tesla averaging 12 kilograms of lithium in their batteries, as do grid storage solutions for renewable energy sources, requiring many times this number for their operations.
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So, it is hardly surprising that demand numbers for lithium have grown pretty much exponentially and will continue to do so in the future. Recent forecasts predict an industry growth of 800% in the next decade, from 100 gigawatt hours in 2017 to 800 gigawatt hours in 2027. All a result of the increasing number of products containing lithium - and their successes.
Lithium is a reactive alkali metal known for its durability and power, that can be obtained through hard-rock mining and brine water mining. The latter is responsible for 87% of the world’s lithium supply, mostly found in the salars or brine lakes in South America. The so-called Lithium Triangle, an otherworldly landscape of salt flats, covers Argentina, Bolivia and Chile and is home to over half of the world’s supply of this metal.
People filling a truck with salt from the saltflacs in Chile
Water issues
The main issue here? Water. These lands are notoriously dry, yet significant amounts of water are needed to extract the lithium. It requires up to 500,000 gallons of water for each ton of lithium, a pretty hefty water bill. Chile has dedicated about 65% of its total water supply to the mining activities in the region, effectively robbing their quinoa farmers and llama herders of much sought after water.
In the example of China, on the other hand, the problem is not so much the lack of water, but more the abundance thereof. In order to extract lithium, holes are drilled and filled with water and toxic chemicals, including hydrochloric acid. When these pools leak or overflow, these chemicals infiltrate rivers and other water sources in the region.
This also affects regions that use hard-rock mining to obtain lithium, including large areas in Australia and North America. Traditional methods are used to extract the lithium, but even these methods still require the use of damaging chemicals. In Nevada, for instance, lithium mining has led to rivers and streams being polluted and fish inhabiting those bodies of water being impacted - for up to 150 miles downstream.
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Environmental costs
Even experts admit that it is far from green. It leaves behind devastating marks in the landscape, while draining water supplies and polluting wells, streams, ground water and rivers. This is a well-known fact that has led to many furious protests in countries currently engaging in lithium mining activities.
As bad as this sounds, it does not even make lithium the most dangerous component of modern batteries. At least the material itself is relatively harmless, when compared to some of its counterparts. Just look at cobalt, for instance, a naturally occurring mineral in central Africa. It is very toxic when pulled from the ground and requires careful handling.
Unsafe and unethical practices
As luck would have it, it can mostly be found in one country - one that is not exactly well known for its far-reaching environmental policies and favourable working conditions, the Democratic Republic of Congo. With prices quadrupling in recent years, it is understandable why there has been such a rush to mine the material - the country is relatively poor and could really use this ‘cash cow’.
This has resulted in largely unethical and unsafe mining practices, often involving child workers handling the dangerous material with their bare hands. All to make a quick buck.
Environmental Costs Of Lithium Battery Addiction: Worldwide. Inside the Congo cobalt mines that exploit children
And honestly? We cannot really blame governments and industry leaders in China, Chile and The Congo. They have found a way of lifting some of the burden of poverty that they have historically been suffering from, having quite literally found themselves sitting on a goldmine. As long as the demand is there, they will keep on delivering.
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Search for greener alternatives
As such, we need a green alternative to these batteries. Some kind of rechargeable, durable energy source that uses environmentally friendly materials instead. Researchers are already looking at ways of maintaining battery performance while cutting out lithium and cobalt. They key phrase here is ‘maintaining battery performance’: if these ‘greener’ batteries are in any way less effective or durable, chances are that they could eventually be just as bad for the environment. Simply because an electric car with a less effective battery will have a higher environmental footprint.
Another solution is the recycling of lithium, through the re-use of unwanted tablets, phones and laptops. This could be a win-win, requiring less mining and reducing pollution from lithium leaking in landfills when lithium-containing products are haphazardly dumped. Yet it has been an uphill struggle so far, due to the lithium’s characteristic of degrading over time and not being able to clearly pinpoint its life stage; as well as the secrecy surrounding the exact contents of each producer’s battery, making it harder to recycle as well.
The issue of ‘greening up’ the batteries to power our smart devices, electric cars, and other ‘sustainable’ inventions will hopefully receive plenty of attention over the coming years. Finding ways of saving the world will, after all, require a steady energy source that is already green in its own right.
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