Extreme environmental pollution due to “clean energies”?

04.02.2022 | www.kla.tv/21531

From 2035 on, only zero-emission new cars are to be licensed in the EU. The European Commission agreed to this on July 14, 2021. The Swiss electro-mobility association "Swiss eMobility" is pursuing the same goal. On its website the association claims electric cars have a better environmental balance sheet than any other mode of transportation. But how much "clean energy" is really inside batteries for electric cars? The Swiss online newspaper Infosperber looked into the question. Its article from June 22, 2021, reveals that for the sake of "green energy" massive ecological damage through the mining of lithium, cobalt and nickel is just accepted. In the light of these facts it becomes obvious what a huge backfiring potential the highly praised "energy turnaround" could trigger. Both political and economic decision-makers are in view of this, called upon to focus on sustainable solutions instead of opening the door to even more gigantic environmental pollution. Kla.TV would like to circulate the following article, by Christa Dettwiler, published under the title: "Lithium for batteries - the Achilles' heel of electric cars", to promote free opinion formation. The USA is in fact investing billions of dollars into lithium mining, but nobody wants such environmental pollution in their surroundings! On an extinct volcano in northern Nevada, workers are preparing blasts and massive excavations in order to take a huge lithium mine into operation. It is the first one in more than ten years. The element powering electric batteries and needed for renewable energy systems is to be mined there. The mine is expected to end the USA’s total dependence on foreign suppliers.  Huge amounts of water and a gigantic mountain of waste The project, known as Lithium Americas, is meeting with resistance. Indigenous people, farmers and environmental organizations object because the mine is expected to consume billions of liters of valuable groundwater and could even contaminate part of it for the next 300 years. In addition, the mine will leave a gigantic mountain of waste behind. It is a David versus Goliath battle. And it is not the only one. All over the world conflicts are being started over the extraction of raw materials for supposedly green energies.  Instead of oil and gold, now lithium, cobalt and nickel The mining of lithium, cobalt and nickel causes massive damage that is often overlooked in the race between the USA, China, Europe and other countries. The current battle over minerals, which can help these countries achieve economic dominance in the coming decades, is comparable to the historical disputes over gold or oil. The Nevada project, for example, which was given the go-ahead in the last days of the Trump presidency, is intended to secure the United States' leadership in the production of these raw materials, especially since President Joe Biden has committed himself to climate protection. In line with this, more lithium mines are already planned in California, Oregon, Tennessee, Arkansas and North Carolina. Aimée Boulanger is director of the Initiative for Responsible Mining Assurance, an organisation that monitors mining projects by BMW, Ford and others. She told the New York Times, "While the intentions are good, our demands for clean energy can do great harm. We must not let that happen." In the first quarter of 2021, lithium mining company operators in the US raised about $3.5 billion US-dollar on Wall Street, seven times as much as in the previous three years. Experts predict that the demand for lithium will increase tenfold before the end of this decade. After all, Tesla, VW, General Motors and others have dozens of new electric models in the pipeline. Although the USA sit on huge reserves, only one large lithium mine - Silver Peak in Nevada - is in operation. Since the 1960s, it has produced about 5,000 tons per year, less than two per cent of the global production. The greatest part comes from Latin America or Australia where it is then processed in batterie production in China and other Asian countries. At present, US mining companies want to massively boost the production of lithium and are seeking 10 billion dollars in subsidies from the US government as part of the planned infrastructure program. They argue that it is a matter of national security. A lobbyist for Piedmont Lithium warns that in case China stopped deliveries to the US, severe consequences would be imminent. "Clean energy" leads to gigantic pollution of the environment Environmental activists, local groups and indigenous tribes, on the other hand, warn against massive damage caused by lithium mining. Near Edward Bartell's ranch in Nevada, the Lithium Americas mine could soon be excavating. It will reach a depth of about 112 meters. The company expects the mine to use more than 12,000 liters of water per minute, which would lower the subsoil water level on Bartell's land by 3.5 meters. The production of the 66,000 tons of lithium carbonate could poison the groundwater with metals containing arsenic and antimony, according to government documents. To extract lithium, the mined clay will be mixed with up to 5,800 tons of sulfuric acid daily. The operating permit documents state that this process will generate 270 million cubic meters of waste containing sulfuric acid, which may contain low-level radioactive uranium as well. In addition, huge areas of antelope grazing land and grouse breeding grounds will be affected. Despite all this, Lithium Americas hope to have their mine up and running next year and earning about four billion dollars. The company's main shareholder is, of all things, the Chinese company Ganfeng Lithium. Car manufacturers go to great lengths to distance themselves from such endeavors. For example, Sue Slaughter, Director of Supply Chain Sustainability, told the New York Times: "Indigenous people are being displaced, their water is being poisoned... We don't want to be part of that. We want to make the companies from which we buy material produce responsibly. As a major buyer, we have the power to influence the situation, and that is what we will do." Environmental organizations will certainly follow up this!

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Sources/Links: Sources/Links: Infosperber: "Lithium for batteries - the Achilles heel of electric cars": https://www.infosperber.ch/umwelt/rohstoffe/lithium-fuer-batterien-die-achillesferse-der-elektroautos/
European Green Deal: Commission proposes realignment of EU economy and society to meet climate targets: https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/de/ip_21_3541
Website of "Swiss eMobility": https://www.swiss-emobility.ch/de/politik/meldungen/eAgenda-2021.php
https://www.swiss-
emobility.ch/de/news/aktuell/meldungen/EU-sieht-Verbrennerverbot-ab-2035-vor.php