Lithium at any price? E&T confirms that major companies ‘mining’ brine for lithium in Chile's Atacama salt flats are reducing water levels in an already dry region, with detrimental consequences for local communities and the environment

GLOBAL LITHIUM DEMAND is soaring, as climate pressures drive a switch to electric vehicles that use the metal in their batteries. Therein lies a conflict: supply needs to increase for environmental reasons but lithium mining harms the environment.