Nation after nation considers the climate emergency a threat for their future survival. But approaches to mitigate it that are promoted by policy makers in the Global North focus on so-called “net-zero” emissions based on dubious carbon trading schemes to maintain current lifestyles and business as usual.
But, in the Global South, popular environmentalism relates to the struggle to achieve fair ecological distribution, to defend community access to natural resources, and to protect people’s livelihoods — all of which are threatened not only by climate change but unequal burdens placed on the Global South by so-called “nature-based solutions.” This has been seen quite dramatically in programs such as Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD) that has led to displacement of Native culturesTo convert or commodify ecosystems in order to trade them as carbon offsets for carbon emitting industries.
Moreover, green policies that promote “renewable energy” technologies such as solar panels, wind turbines and electric batteries threaten to do even more harm to ecosystems in extraction areas by destroying biodiversity, contaminating water, and causing social and environmental damage to local Indigenous communities.
The United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has just released a report that shows that a 1.5 degree Celsius rise in global temperatures is possible. Temperatures could even rise to this level, as it was highlighted in the most recent report. Renewable energy technology is seen as vital in the efforts to rapidly decarbonize global power systems. Technology companies see the possibility of shifting to renewable energies and a complete transition from wind, water, and solar energy by 2050 as technically feasible and economically feasible. There are few downsides to this concept.
However, the transition towards a low-carbon world may lead to ecological destruction similar to that caused by fossil fuel extraction on the ecosystems in the extractive areas. Climate change mitigation that relies on renewable energy transition has been complicit in ecological degradation and perpetuating violent conflict, as well unjust patterns such as colonialism and racism, patriarchy and militarization, and structural violence. Climate mitigation effects are not equally distributed nor experienced by the same actors. They could actually worsen the climate debt to the Global South.
The COP26 conference on UN Climate Change in Glasgow, Scotland was the most recent. Glasgow Climate Pact153 countries have committed to achieving near-global net Zero Emissions. The proposal contains a mitigation plan to accelerate electric vehicle adoption. It includes more than 30 countries and six major vehicle manufacturers, as well as major cities. They have stated their determination to achieve zero emissions for all new cars and vans by 2040 globally, and 2035 in the leading markets.
The electrification of cars for decarbonization and the Paris Agreement and Glasgow Climate Pact requirements are examples of the same colonialist-extractivist business as usual and involve many environmental consequences while failing to cut carbon emissions at their source.
First, electric vehicles leave a significant carbon footprint as they use lithium batteries, which are a non-renewable resource that is stored in prehistoric water on Indigenous lands. Mining lithium is a complex process. taking a large amount of watervulnerable ecosystems, which can disrupt their fragile natural equilibrium.
The second factor is how electric vehicles are used after production, as charging electric vehicles depends on local electrical grids. Electric vehicles can add to the carbon dioxide emissions of areas with electric grids that are powered by coal. The European and American policies of electrification of cars also replicate the current model for individual car use, and do not relieve congestion in crowded cities.
In the 1990s, Lithium-ion battery technology was introduced in consumer electronics. The internal chemistry of lithium — light, conductive and energy-dense — allows it to recharge electricity quickly and efficiently. Many times more efficient than lithium-ion batteries more energy efficientThis makes lithium more attractive than a nickel/metal hybrid alternative.
The demand for lithium has been high for the production of rechargeable batteries. doubled in less than 10 yearsIt is expected to be in the future. increase fivefold by 2025. These predictions were made prior to the COP26, which is directly related carbon-mitigation policies.
Lithium is often referred to as an environmentally friendly resource that is sustainable, modern, responsible, reflexive, and adaptable to the 21st Century. This differs from more destructive extractive resources like ores and fossil fuels. Many of the extractive concessions granted to lithium companies are not, however. overlap with ancestral Indigenous territories, communal lands and protected ecological areas. These areas have been found to be prone to multiple ecological risks, including waste generation, landscape changes, contamination of water bodies and surface salts, as well as impacts on fauna and flora.
It has been proven that lithium extraction from mineral and brine reserves can deplete local water resources.
Chile is home to lithium mining, which takes place underground in the Atacama Salt Flat. This salt flat is one of the most dry places on Earth. Atacama Desert lithium mining impacts biodiversity, depletes water and displaces Indigenous communities in the extraction areas — communities that have been marginalized and criminalized by the government for no reason other than their occupation of this resource-rich land.
Chile has one of largest lithium reservoirs in the world. Lithium is also relatively inexpensive due to the characteristics that the reserves have. However, unlike oil and coal, only a handful of countries have the largest lithium reserves and production. are concentrated in the southern hemisphere.
Lithium is extracted from salt water from the bottom of the Atacama Desert. Then, it is extracted by chemical processes. The first step is to drain more than 63 billion liters(16.6 billion Gallons) of salty drinking water annually Companies use and contaminate freshwater for the second part. Although mining companies claim that water extracted from the desert’s underground is not for human consumption, local species are fed by the rich diversity of microorganisms found there. The Atacama Desert also has more water than the groundwater. can generate sustainably.
One battery for an electric vehicle requires 63 kilograms lithium carbonate. Each ton of lithium carbonate or the equivalent for 14 electric cars requires the following: evaporation of 2 million liters of water — the equivalent of an Olympic-size swimming pool.
The main impact of lithium extraction in Chile is water use. This is because significant amounts of water are extracted from the salt flats below. The water cannot be replenished at the same pace as it is being pumped out. The salt flats’ underground salt flats are subject to brine extraction, which reduces the availability and quality of freshwater for animals, plants, and humans.
Water is scarce in the area, which has led to the displacement of Indigenous communities. have had to reduce their agricultural and pastoral activities — growing corn, quinoa and potatoes, and raising small-scale Andean livestock like guanacos, lamas and alpacas — while new generations have chosen to work in the mines or migrate to the cities to obtain a livelihood. The area’s increasing evaporation and the higher land- and lagoon temperatures have had a significant impact on the economy. provoked “local climate change”This has directly affected fragile biodiversity around salt flats, reducing both animal and plant populations. If rudimentary technology for evaporation is not developed, the pressure to extract lithium from salt flats will only increase.
The Atacama salt flat population is located in areas far from major urban centers. constitute mostly small townsCommunities or aylus consisting of 50 to 500 people (except along strategic routes).
This area has been home to many. human settlements for millennia, including for the Lickan Antay (Atacameños), Kolla, Quechua and Aymara peoples. These communities have always relied on agriculture and livestock rearing. Small-scale commerce is also a major part of their lives.
These communities are further affected by the presence of mining companies. These impacts include the loss in their livelihoods, the extinction and internal conflicts over how to spend the royalty payments that communities receive from the mining firms. Theft, drug addiction, and alcoholism are also problems that community members face. Mining lures young people to work in mines for a living and a good salary. abandon their farming traditionsTo move to the cities for better opportunities. The local economy is also affected by mining companies that provide jobs to residents from other regions.
In the years to come, lithium consumption will rise significantly. This is due to green electromobility policies as well as everything related to the storage and decarbonization of renewable energy. This will have dramatic effects on the extraction areas, such as Chile, where mining companies demand increases in the daily limits for brine extraction. The same happens in Argentina and Bolivia because the three countries are located in the “Lithium Triangle.” Demand may also call for the appearance of new lithium extractive projects, such as in Nevada, the United States or Mexico.
The colonialist policies of resource extraction will continue to be in place. Countries in the Global South that pollute least and have no electric vehicles will suffer the most. The negative effects of lithium consumption will only worsen as more people consume lithium. Their lands will be destroyed and their water contaminated. It is crucial to learn from the mistakes of colonialist mining projects in non-industrialized countries and work for policies that support solid local policies to protect their land.
We need to rethink the solutions that we use to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels and combat climate change. Radical approaches are needed, including a drastic divestment from colonialist, capitalist life. Changing the mobility matrix away from single occupant vehicles and challenging the paradigm of progress requires real transformation, not a mere shifting in focus within the colonialist-extractive model.
