Lithium Mining in South America

By Mya Elliott and Thomas Hedges

BA History Students at Cal State East Bay

The story of mining spans the entire history of South America, starting in the pre-colonial era. The history of mining in the region also ties to the economies of the North American region. Lithium mining is the newest form of mineral extraction, creating significant concerns about its environmental impact. The history of lithium mining in Latin America is still developing, as some of the first lithium extractions occurred during the 1990s. Many of the products requiring lithium batteries are relatively new. Capitalism and the growth of the electric car market have created a demand for the world to open lithium mines in South America; the demand is constantly changing. The mining industry in Chile, Argentina, and Bolivia have played a vital role in exporting raw materials to the United States, harkening back to the legacies of colonialism and extraction. The global demand for products is constantly changing to fit the desires and needs of those in the capitalist system. The extraction of natural resources affects the surrounding environment and has contributed to the acceleration of climate change during this age of industrialization and urbanization. As large corporations continue to ignore the historical and tangible evidence of climate change to increase their economic prosperity, more species are becoming extinct regularly. This push for renewable energy has created an even greater demand for lithium extraction for electric batteries; however, the harmful effects of this process are always overlooked, as the survival of our planet is genuinely not the reason for this increase in demand.

Lithium Mine in Chile

Self-driving cars and electric vehicles are the future of transportation. The need for more sustainable batteries has skyrocketed, yet the environment has suffered. Unfortunately, major corporations have looked to developing countries to extract lithium as cheaply as possible by exploiting labor without concern about the impact on Mother Earth (Pacha Mama). Chile, Argentina, and Bolivia have been given the term the Lithium Triangle due to their massive mines and accessibility to lithium. Mining in those countries is essential to economies, but local inhabitants have not had a say in the development of this industry nor how it affects their daily lives.

Corporations like Volkswagen, a car company that produces electric cars, highlight the issue on their website. The website mentioning where their batteries came from is essential to note when looking at the point of lithium mining, as most corporations never highlight how their batteries are made and where they came from, because they come from places where workers are exploited or the mining itself is doing irreversible damage to the earth. In the case of mining in Chile, the issue is that the mining process has contaminated groundwater that is used to supply drinking water to some local communities and villages in the region. Volkswagen is currently collecting facts in order to gain its own impression of the water supply in the Atacama Desert in Chile with the support of independent experts (Silva 2023). Volkswagen knows about the groundwater issues and understands that its practices are damaging local communities. According to journalist Martin Silva, these local communities are unhappy with the world's attention to their countries, let alone their backyard.

“We don't eat lithium nor batteries. We do drink water," said Veronica Chavez, 48, president of the Santuario de Tres Pozos Indigenous community near the town of Salinas Grandes in Argentina's lithium heartland (Silva 2023).

The impact of lithium mining on communities is shown in this quote about how companies only have a vision of profit.

The groundwater in Chile is one example of how the environment is being changed. Ecosystems are being disrupted; for example, native trees in surrounding areas are dying due to the mining chemicals seeping into the ground and polluting the roots. Wildlife is being affected as well. Mining can be linked to two flamingo species dying slowly over time, creating problems for other wildlife.

Flamingo is drinking from contaminated groundwater

The lithium triangle has caught the attention of major car manufacturers, which is the kiss of death in some aspects. We should ask how long it will take to destroy lives and the Earth. Historical evidence has come to show the long-term effects of climate change and how humans continuously destroy the environment that nourishes us and so many other species. The flamingos can’t stop mining, and the trees can’t stop the mining, but we can fight with and stand firm with the communities affected by the impacts of lithium mining. This is more than just a South American issue because the small communities in Chile, Argentina, and Bolivia aren't driving new 2023 electric Volkswagens. They are losing water, resources, and wildlife for machines they don’t have access to or the funds to purchase, a purely exploited business transaction. The people of these countries are being mistreated. Yet, Volkswagen and other companies acknowledge their misconduct, but since changing their practices would cost them money, they will sit in their self-driving cars and drive right by the issues, not slowing down.

Bibliography

Greenfield, Nicole. “Lithium Mining is Leaving Chile’s Indigenous Communities High and Dry (Literally),” Natural Resource Defense Council (NRDC), April 26, 2022, https://www.nrdc.org/stories/lithium-mining-leaving-chiles-indigenous-communities-high-and-dry-literally

Jerez, Bárbara, Ingrid Garcés, and Robinson Torres. “Lithium Extractivism and Water Injustices in the Salar de Atacama, Chile: The Colonial Shadow of Green Electromobility.” Political Geography 87 (2021): 102382–. https://csu-eastbay.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/permalink/01CALS_UHL/on8gvj/cdi_proquest_journals_2562577441

Silva, Martin. “‘We Can’t Eat Lithium’: South Americans Strike Back at Mining Industry,” Euronews, February 27, 2023, https://www.euronews.com/green/2022/10/28/south-americas-lithium-triangle-communities-are-being-sacrificed-to-save-the-planet.

“Lithium Mining: What You Should Know about the Contentious Issue.” https://www.volkswagenag.com/en/news/stories/2020/03/lithium-mining-what-you-should-know-about-the-contentious-issue.html#.