Having discussed so much about the negative impacts and pollution lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) cause, can we really just do away with LIBs altogether? And what do we replace it if we were ever to get rid of LIBs altogether? To what extent can we blame the increasing pollution by LIBs on the decreasing cost of LIBs? These are all unanswered questions that remain difficult to answer. 

While LIB and the process of manufacturing and disposing of them can be very polluting, we continue relying heavily on them. Their close relationship with renewable energy makes them even more sticky issue. The decreasing cost of LIBs has also undeniably played an important role in allowing the implementation of renewable green energy to become more economically feasible than ever by reducing their margins between fossil fuel-produced energy (Gielen et al., 2019). Global greenhouse gas emissions can potentially decrease significantly once renewables reach grid parity. 

Do we attempt to reduce global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by moving towards renewables instead while knowingly producing more LIBs or reduce LIB-related pollution by continue sticking with fossil fuels? For now, as global warming and climate change is the most pressing environmental issue globally discussed, reducing GHGs will take priority (United Nations, n.d.). However, what will happen when LIB-related pollution starts impacting the global environment negatively we will never know. Will it become the next plastic? It has brought us so much convenience by allowing us to store energy efficiently. Yet we still do not have a perfect way of discarding them when they are no longer deemed useful to us. 

Moreover, will there be a new energy storage technology that will emerge as economically competitive and greener than LIBs? Even if there is, constructing such an energy storage system will require minerals and resources which are polluting in their own ways.

Nevertheless, these blogs are not here to reject LIBs altogether. I still do believe that they are important for the future of clean energy. The main message I hope to get across is that as long as our demand for energy continues to rise, no matter how ‘clean’ our energy becomes, it will never become completely ‘green’. While we cannot stop using energy and electricity altogether, we should be aware of the impacts these ‘clean’ energy has and never stop looking for ways to reduce their impacts (United Nations, n.d.).

What will happen to the future of LIBs, only time will tell. For now, reducing our energy use is a simple way to start protecting our environment. 

Reference List

Gielen, D., Boshell, F., Saygin, D., Bazilian, M., Wagner, N. L., & Gorini, R. (2019). The role of renewable energy in the global energy transformation. Energy Strategy Reviews, 24, 38–50. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.esr.2019.01.006 

United Nations. (n.d.). Li-ion batteries – powering the fossil-fuel-free economy | United Nations. https://www.un.org/en/Frontier-Technologies-Issues