By Roselilly Ushewokunze
Lithium is widely regarded as a strategic mineral in the transition to renewable energy. The emission of carbon into the atmosphere continues to cause global warming which is detrimental to the environment.
Unless carbon emissions are reduced by 45 percent by 2030 and to zero by 2050, the world has little chance of remaining under the 1.5C warming limit set in the 2015 Paris climate negotiations. To achieve this, there must be an urgent global move towards clean and renewable energy.
Lithium-ion batteries can support this shift efficiently on a large scale. Thus, they are being rapidly implemented in the development of new cars in the global north for both public and private transportation, with the dual objectives of lowering carbon emissions and urban air pollution from petrol and diesel vehicles. Consequently, lithium demand is rising quickly, and supply is finding it difficult to keep up.
The spot price of lithium carbonate, a substance used in batteries, tripled in the final quarter of 2015. In addition to being used to power electric vehicles, lithium-ion batteries are also utilized to store energy produced by solar and wind turbines, allowing for renewable energy regardless of the weather. While the most pressing ecological concern confronting humanity is climate change, what if lithium is not the answer?
Large-scale exploitation of natural resources frequently has negative effects on the environment, and host communities bear the brunt of these consequences yet indigenous communities have specific rights under international law in addition to the universal human right to a healthy environment, which includes the requirements for clean water, air, enough food, and other factors. The protection of these communities is imperative as their social, economic, cultural and religious well-being is tied to the environment.
Yet the production of lithium has caused massive environmental degradation in South America and Africa which hold large deposits. Studies indicate that an estimated 500,000 gallons of water are used by evaporative technology for every ton of lithium extracted, furthermore, 95% of the extracted brine water is lost permanently to evaporation.
In addition, the extraction and processing of lithium can cause hazardous chemicals to leak into the water supply from the evaporation pools. This has negative impacts on aquatic life and can lead to eutrophication. Inevitably, the extraction of lithium contaminates water bodies and soil leading to massive biodiversity loss.
While lithium may be a solution to the energy and climate crisis, businesses and governments should re-focus their environmental, social and governance (ESG) mandate on the production of lithium. A human and environment-centric approach to transition minerals such as lithium is critical in balancing needs and sustainability.
Efforts must be in place to recycle lithium-ion batteries to reduce the demand for raw lithium. There is a need to develop alternative battery technologies to slow down the lithium rush and most importantly to create policies and legal frameworks to guard against aggressive and negative development.
