In recent years electric cars have become very popular. Mostly because they promote clean energy and better performance when driving. Although some of this might be true electric cars are not 100% clean when it comes to clean energy.
Most all electric cars and plug-in hybrids run on a lithium-ion batteries. Lithium-ion batteries are in environmental friendly cars, but the batteries themselves are not environmentally friendly.
The fist big issue is the mining involved to get the lithium. Lithium is extracted from the earth by mining. The mining process involves taking a immense amount of water and pumping it down into slat flats. This brings mineral — rich saltwater to the surface of the earth. The lithium is then filtered out of the mixture by evaporating the water and salt water.
The problem with this is that there is a huge risk of contaminating water supplies. Not only could this process turn the water dirty and undrinkable, this process also uses up local water supplies, and draining them. This causes a big issue considering that a lot of Earth’s lithium supply come from the desert regions of Australia and China.
However, more than half of Earths supply comes from the Lithium Triangle. A trading triangle that spans from the Andean Mountains of Argentina to Bolivia to Chile. These mining areas are some of the driest places on earth due to the mining. According to the United Nations this type of mining can consume as much as 65% of the region’s water.
Another issue with these batteries are that less than 5% of lithium ion batteries are currently being recycled. The other 95% of lithium ion batteries end up in landfills. This takes a very dire toll on the environment and the repercussions are severe. Lithium batteries contain very hazardous components, when they end up in landfills these hazardous components can leak into the soil and groundwater. Contamination surrounding land and water with extremely hazardous chemicals.
The main reason as to why lithium ion batteries are not being recycled, is because it takes a lot of money, time, and effort. Recycling a lithium ion battery is very complicated because these batteries are not designed to be taken apart. So recycling a lithium battery takes a lot of resources.
Another big issue is that these batteries only last around 10–20 years. And there are a lot factors that can reduce their lifespan. For example, the batteries could degrade faster in hotter climates. Or charging at a level 3 station can cause the battery to over heat ultimately damaging the battery.
So every decade thousands of these batteries will end up in landfills rotting away and contaminating soil and water sources. And because it costs to much to recycle them, every year more and more will be added to the piles in the landfills. Creating yet another hazard for the environment with no way to clean it up.
