Environmental pollution, Impact on Humans and Animals, Lithium Pollution, Pollution

Impacts of Lithium Pollution on Humans and Animals Part 2

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Continuing from the previous blog, I will continue discussing the impacts Li has (Nciri et al., 2011). 

As exposure to Li decreased chemical and biological functions, particularly in the kidneys and liver, there will be an increase in the risk of diseases (Nciri et al., 2011). Given the similar physiology, organs and body plans, rats often suffer similar diseases as humans (Glass, 2016). Therefore understanding the possible diseases rats can suffer from due to exposure to Li is very beneficial to have a grasp of the possible diseases humans might suffer from when exposed to Li pollution for extended periods. 

Figure 1: (American Kidney Fund, 2021)

Diseases that may arise include

1. Chronic kidney disease (CKD)

The probability of developing chronic kidney disease increases exponentially due to damage to renal tissue which is caused by prolonged oxidative stress as mentioned in the previous blog (HealthMatters.io, n.d.; American Kidney Fund, 2021). 

CKD reduces the production of the hormone erythropoietin in the kidneys (Laminate Medical, 2017). Hormone erythropoietin is essential to the body as it protects and stimulates the production of red blood cells (Schoener & Borger, 2022). Hence, CKD, especially in people in the last stage of the disease, often results in anemia which can lead to tiredness, dizziness and dyspnea (shortness of breath) (Laminate Medical, 2017). Left untreated, anemia can lead to organ and heart failure (Laminate Medical, 2017). 

2. Cardiovascular diseases 

Besides anemia, CKD often leads to cardiovascular diseases (Pellegrino et al., 2019). A weaker kidney will put more stress on the heart as more energy is needed to bring blood to the kidney (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2022). Additionally, CKD can alter the blood pressure of patients which will lead to heart disease (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2022). 

CKD can also result in the build-up of salt and fluid which will damage blood vessels and cause atherosclerosis (building up of substances along artery walls) (Laminate Medical, 2017; Mayo Clinic, n.d.). 

The build-up of urea in the body, mentioned in the previous blog, results in toxic reactions and causes inflammation of the pericardium, an important sac around the heart that protects and surrounds the heart (Laminate Medical, 2017; Cleveland Clinic, 2022).

3. Cancer

CKD at the later stages often leads to kidney cancer (National Kidney Foundation, n.d.). National Kidney Foundation (n.d.), observed that people who suffer from end-stage CKD are around 5 times as likely to get kidney cancer compared to people with a healthy kidney. 

Kidney cancer occurs when kidney cell mutates and multiply forming a tumour (Mayo Clinic, 2021). Without prompt treatment, the cancer cell can spread to other parts of the body and may lead to other cancer such as Thyroid cancer and Prostate cancer (American Cancer Society, 2020). 

4. Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease 

Li pollution leading to CKD can result in Parkinson’s disease among patients (Nciri et al., 2011). Apart from cardiovascular diseases, CKD can result lead to neurological complications (Meléndez-Flores & Estrada-Bellmann, 2020). Meléndez-Flores & Estrada-Bellmann (2020) suggest that the decrease in cognitive functions will result in Parkinson’s disease which can eventually lead to dementia, Alzheimer’s disease and other neural disorders (Nciri et al., 2011; Meléndez-Flores & Estrada-Bellmann, 2020).

 

As the experiment on lab rats only lasted for a month, further impacts of prolonged exposure to Li are not studied. Should Li pollution become significant in water bodies and food chains in the near future, exposure to Li will stay for a much longer period of time if no active measures are taken to reduce concentrations of Li in the environment. Other parts besides the Kidney and Liver may likely be significantly impacted as the length of exposure increases, leading to a range of other diseases. Additionally, Li at concentrations above 2 g/kg of food was not analysed and hence other possible impacts the higher concentration of Li has on animals and humans have yet to be discovered (Nciri et al., 2011). 

 

Reference List: 

American Cancer Society. (2020, June 9). Living as a Kidney Cancer Survivor. https://www.cancer.org/cancer/kidney-cancer/after-treatment/follow-up.html 

American Kidney Fund. (2021, November 6). Chronic kidney disease (CKD). https://www.kidneyfund.org/all-about-kidneys/chronic-kidney-disease-ckd 

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2022, July 12). Link Between Chronic Kidney Disease, Diabetes, and Heart Disease. https://www.cdc.gov/kidneydisease/publications-resources/link-between-ckd-diabetes-heart-disease.html 

Cleveland Clinic. (2022, July 19). Pericardium: Function and Anatomy. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/body/23561-pericardium 

Erythropoietin | You and Your Hormones from the Society for Endocrinology. (n.d.). https://www.yourhormones.info/hormones/erythropoietin/ 

Glass, D. (2016, July 22). How Humans Are Like Rats. A Moment of Science – Indiana Public Media. https://indianapublicmedia.org/amomentofscience/how-humans-are-like-rats.php 

HealthMatters.io. (n.d.). Lipid Peroxides (Genova) | Healthmatters.io. https://healthmatters.io/understand-blood-test-results/lipid-peroxides-genova 

Laminate Medical. (2017, January 11). Effects of Kidney Failure on Body Systems | Laminate Medical. Laminate Medical Technologies. http://www.laminatemedical.com/2017/01/11/effects-kidney-failure-body-systems/ 

Mayo Clinic. (n.d.). Arteriosclerosis / atherosclerosis – Symptoms and causes. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/arteriosclerosis-atherosclerosis/symptoms-causes/syc-20350569 

Mayo Clinic. (2021, March 15). Kidney cancer – Symptoms and causes. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/kidney-cancer/symptoms-causes/syc-20352664 

Meléndez-Flores, J. D., & Estrada-Bellmann, I. (2020). Linking chronic kidney disease and Parkinson’s disease: a literature review. Metabolic Brain Disease, 36(1), 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11011-020-00623-1 

National Kidney Foundation. (n.d.). Kidney Cancer. https://www.kidney.org/atoz/content/kidney-cancer 

Nciri, R., Allagui, M. S., Bourogaa, E., Saoudi, M., Murat, J. C., Croute, F., & Elfeki, A. (2011). Lipid peroxidation, antioxidant activities and stress protein (HSP72/73, GRP94) expression in kidney and liver of rats under lithium treatment. Journal of Physiology and Biochemistry, 68(1), 11–18. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13105-011-0113-3 

Pellegrino, D., La Russa, D., & Marrone, A. (2019). Oxidative Imbalance and Kidney Damage: New Study Perspectives from Animal Models to Hospitalized Patients. Antioxidants, 8(12), 594. https://doi.org/10.3390/antiox8120594 

Schoener, B., & Borger, J. (2022, December 5). NCBI – WWW Error Blocked Diagnostic. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK536997/ 

Environmental pollution, Impact on Humans and Animals, Lithium Pollution, Pollution

Impacts of Lithium Pollution on Humans and Animals Part 1

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As mentioned in the previous blogs, the rapid growth in demand for lithium-ion batteries and low rates of recycling due to the low cost of production has resulted in Li pollution when these batteries are discarded into landfills with other municipal waste. This sudden increase in Li in the environment impacts marine life, plants, animals, and humans. In the next few blogs, I will explore more about the impacts Li have on animals and humans. 

With the increasing concentration of Li in the environment, concerns about prolonged exposure to high concentrations of Li are also rising. As more Li leaks into the environment, into water and food sources, Li will enter the food chain as animals and humans consume contaminated plants, animals and water. To understand the impacts consuming Li has on humans and animals, experiments have been conducted on animals such as rats.

Figure 1: (Magazine, 2019) 

Experiments on young Wistar male rats conducted by Nciri et al. (2011) have found significant changes to the chemical and biological activities in the kidneys and liver of rats even at low concentrations of Li. Experiment rats were fed food and water with the same concentrations of Li over different periods and changes were observed over a period of up to 28 days (Nciri et al., 2011). 

Significant changes observed: 

1. Decrease regulating function of liver and kidney

This treatment led to serum concentrations ranging from 0.5 mM (day 7) to 1.34 mM (day 28) and renal insufficiency highlighted by an increase of blood creatinine and urea levels and a decrease of urea excretion. – Nciri et al., 2011

Creatinine is waste matter from muscles that are excreted from the body through urine (American Kidney Fund, 2022). A healthy liver will ensure a sufficient amount of creatinine is excreted out of the body to ensure a healthy level of blood creatinine (American Kidney Fund, 2022). An increase in blood creatinine indicates that the kidney is no longer functioning healthily. 

Urea on the other hand is a chemical waste product and an important circulating source of nitrogen compounds that remove waste products from the bloodstream (Weiner et al., 2015). Urea is produced in the liver before being transported to the kidney where it is filtered to remove waste products from the body (Mayo Clinic, 2021). It is essential to the regulatory function of the kidney (Weiner et al., 2015). A decrease in urea excretion will result in a reduction of chemical waste removed from the body. 

2. Damage to tissues

Lithium treatment was found to trigger an oxidative stress both in kidney and liver, leading to an increase of lipid peroxidation level (TBARS) and of superoxide dismutase and catalase activities.- Nciri et al., 2011

Oxidative stress occurs when there is a disproportion between antioxidant activity and free radical activity (Dix, 2018). Prolonged/severe oxidative stress can damage renal tissue (HealthMatters.io, n.d.), the connective tissue that surrounds and supports the kidney (Gyurászová et al., 2020; National Cancer Institute, n.d.). Renal tissue will lead to kidney failure and related diseases which will be explored more in the next blog. 

 

Reference List

American Kidney Fund. (2022, January 5). Serum creatinine test. https://www.kidneyfund.org/all-about-kidneys/tests/serum-creatinine-test 

Dix, R. M. N. (2018, September 29). Everything You Should Know About Oxidative Stress. Healthline. https://www.healthline.com/health/oxidative-stress 

Gyurászová, M., Gurecká, R., Bábíčková, J., & Tóthová, U. (2020). Oxidative Stress in the Pathophysiology of Kidney Disease: Implications for Noninvasive Monitoring and Identification of Biomarkers. Oxidative Medicine and Cellular Longevity, 2020, 1–11. https://doi.org/10.1155/2020/5478708 

HealthMatters.io. (n.d.). Lipid Peroxides (Genova) | Healthmatters.io. https://healthmatters.io/understand-blood-test-results/lipid-peroxides-genova 

Magazine, S. (2019, February 27). The History of the Lab Rat Is Full of Scientific Triumphs and Ethical Quandaries. Smithsonian Magazine. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/history-lab-rat-scientific-triumphs-ethical-quandaries-180971533/ 

Mayo Clinic. (2021, August 19). Blood urea nitrogen (BUN) test – Mayo Clinic. https://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/blood-urea-nitrogen/about/pac-20384821 

National Cancer Institute. (n.d.). Kidneys | SEER Training. https://training.seer.cancer.gov/anatomy/urinary/components/kidney.html 

Nciri, R., Allagui, M. S., Bourogaa, E., Saoudi, M., Murat, J. C., Croute, F., & Elfeki, A. (2011). Lipid peroxidation, antioxidant activities and stress protein (HSP72/73, GRP94) expression in kidney and liver of rats under lithium treatment. Journal of Physiology and Biochemistry, 68(1), 11–18. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13105-011-0113-3 

Weiner, I. D., Mitch, W. E., & Sands, J. M. (2015). Urea and Ammonia Metabolism and the Control of Renal Nitrogen Excretion. Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology, 10(8), 1444–1458. https://doi.org/10.2215/cjn.10311013 

Environmental pollution, Impact on Plants, Lithium Pollution, Pollution

Impacts of Lithium Pollution on Plants

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Although plants naturally take up Li even in uncontaminated soils (Bolan et al., 2021), excess intake is harmful to plants. Li concentration in soil naturally is extremely low, and small amounts of Li can improve and benefit the growth of organisms (Chow, 2022). However, the concentration of Li in soil has increased drastically along with the exponential growth in demand for renewable energy and the lack of regulations for the disposal of Li products (Bolan et al., 2021; Hayyat et al., 2021) (Figure 1). Furthermore, as plants absorb this Li, it enters the food chain when humans consume contaminated edible crops (Hayyat et al., 2021). 

Figure 1: (Bolan et al., 2021)

While Li is toxic to all plants at high concentrations (Hayyat et al., 2021), different Li sources have varying impacts on plants and different plants react to Li differently (Shakoor et al., 2022). By and large, plants in soil with a lower pH absorb more Li (Hayyat et al., 2021). The three main physiological parameters that are studied and affected by Li concentrations are germination, root biomass and shoot biomass (Shakoor et al., 2022). Shakoor et al. (2022) studied four main sources of Li namely LiNO3, Li2SO4, LiOH and LiCl and generally, an increased concentration of Li reduces the germination, root biomass and shoot biomass of plants with some exceptions such as soybean when LiOH is the Li source (Shakoor et al., 2022). Among the four sources, Li uptake is highest with LiCl (Figure 2). 

Figure 2: (Shakoor et al., 2022)

Furthermore, Shakoor et al. (2022) observed a decrease in chlorophyll content as Li concentrations increased. Chlorophyll a, the primary photosynthetic pigment experienced a higher fall in percentage compared to chlorophyll b (Shakoor et al., 2022). 

Chlorophyll a and b decreased by 17% and 5% at <50 ppm 234 concentration with exposure at ≥50 ppm concentrations declined chlorophyll a and b by 34% and 235 10% respectively. – Shakoor et al. (2022)

Compared to most elements, Li is very mobile and can easily travel through soil and within the plant (Hayyat et al., 2021; Shakoor et al., 2022). Therefore, the part of the plant where Li is mainly accumulated in varies between plants and the exogenous level of Li (Shakoor et al., 2022).  

Besides limiting crop development, Hayyat et al. (2021) also found that an increase in Li concentrations in soil reduced other essential nutrients such as Na, N and K that are crucial to the growth of plants. Li also increased the average pH of the soil which will threaten the survival of plants that grow primarily in soils with low pH (Hayyat et al., 2021). With the potential to threaten the survival of plant species and disrupt food supply, Li pollution must not be taken lightly just because its effects are yet to be observed on a global scale.  

 

Reference List

Bolan, N., Hoang, S. A., Tanveer, M., Wang, L., Bolan, S., Sooriyakumar, P., Robinson, B., Wijesekara, H., Wijesooriya, M., Keerthanan, S., Vithanage, M., Markert, B., Fränzle, S., Wünschmann, S., Sarkar, B., Vinu, A., Kirkham, M., Siddique, K. H., & Rinklebe, J. (2021). From mine to mind and mobiles – Lithium contamination and its risk management. Environmental Pollution, 290, 118067. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2021.118067 

Chow, A. T. (2022). Proactive approach to minimize lithium pollution. Journal of Environmental Quality, 51(5), 872–876. https://doi.org/10.1002/jeq2.20405 

Hayyat, M. U., Nawaz, R., Siddiq, Z., Shakoor, M. B., Mushtaq, M., Ahmad, S. R., Ali, S., Hussain, A., Irshad, M. A., Alsahli, A. A., & Alyemeni, M. N. (2021). Investigation of Lithium Application and Effect of Organic Matter on Soil Health. Sustainability, 13(4), 1705. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13041705 

Martin, L. (2019, June 10). What Are the Roles of Chlorophyll A & B? Sciencing. https://sciencing.com/what-are-the-roles-of-chlorophyll-a-b-12526386.html 

Shakoor, N., Adeel, M., Azeem, I., Ahmad, M. A., Zain, M., Abbas, A., Zhou, P., Li, Y., Ming, X., & Rui, Y. (2022). Responses of Agricultural plants to Lithium pollution: Trends, Meta-Analysis, and Perspectives. BioRxiv. https://doi.org/10.1101/2022.05.07.491047

Environmental pollution, Impact on Marine Life, Lithium Pollution, Pollution

Impacts of Lithium Pollution on Marine Life

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The ever-growing demand for lithium, Li, globally along with incorrect disposal and lack of standardised recycling process in the industry has resulted in Li pollution (Rodríguez et al., 2022). Water bodies are one of the most common places Li end up in through wastewater runoff (Kiyomoto et al., 2010). Being the lightest metal, the concentration of Li in the surface water naturally is very low and hence unnoticed. However, with the increase in the concentration of Li in the water bodies together with climate change, its impact on marine life can no longer be ignored. 

Studies on the impact of Li on aquatic life have found that different concentrations of Li affect marine life both physiologically and biochemically (Rodríguez et al., 2022). 

1. Sea urchins: Li affects the embryogenesis of sea urchins resulting in malformations (Ruocco et al., 2016, Rodríguez et al., 2022). Skeletogenic cell formation and arrangement are delayed and interrupted (Figure 1) and this percentage of abnormal embryos also increased with the concentration of LiCl (Ruocco et al., 2016) (Figure 2). 

Figure 1: (Rodríguez et al., 2022)

Figure 2: (Ruocco et al., 2016)

2. Mussels: An increase in the concentration of Li decreases the metabolism of mussels (Viana et al., 2020). Furthermore, prolonged exposure to high concentrations of Li induces neurotoxic effects (Viana et al., 2020), disturbing neurons critical to the nervous system (Figure 3).  

Figure 3: (Viana et al., 2020)

3. Zebrafish: Similarly, exposure to Li impacts the embryo development of Zebrafish hindering normal development and anatomy formation (Siebel et al., 2014) (Figure 4). 

Figure 4: (Cebra-Thomas, 2004)

The impact of Li on marine life is likely to further exacerbate as a result of climate change (Rodríguez et al., 2022). The temperature rise of oceans raises the body temperature of ectothermic organisms which makes up the majority of marine fishes. The rise in body temperature changes the biochemical and metabolic rates of organisms (Rodríguez et al., 2022). As much marine life is already living near its physiological limits, they are likely unable to defend against the effects of Li and other pollutants as the temperature continues to rise (Rodríguez et al., 2022). Furthermore, Rodríguez et al. (2022) point out that warmer oceans increase oxidative stress as more reactive oxygen species (ROS) can now form in cells, hence leading to organisms becoming more sensitive towards pollutants.  

Coupled with global warming, the increasing concentration of Li in oceans will significantly threaten the survival of marine life. Therefore, proper disposal of lithium-ion batteries and recycling facilities are necessary to reduce the amount of Li entering water bodies and this requires continuous effort and commitment from all stakeholders involved. 

 

Reference List

Betteridge, D. J. (2000). What is oxidative stress? Metabolism, 49(2), 3–8. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0026-0495(00)80077-3 

Cebra-Thomas. (2004). Effect of lithium on fish development. https://www.swarthmore.edu/NatSci/sgilber1/DB_lab/Fish/Lithium05.html 

Kiyomoto, M., Morinaga, S., & Ooi, N. (2010). Distinct embryotoxic effects of lithium appeared in a new assessment model of the sea urchin: the whole embryo assay and the blastomere culture assay. Ecotoxicology, 19(3), 563–570. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10646-009-0452-9 

Marín Rodríguez, B., Coppola, F., Conradi, M., & Freitas, R. (2022). The impact of temperature on lithium toxicity in the gastropod Tritia neritea. Environmental Science and Pollution Research, 29(43), 64745–64755. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-022-20258-2 

National Cancer Institute. (n.d.). NCI Dictionary of Cancer Terms. National Cancer Institute. https://www.cancer.gov/publications/dictionaries/cancer-terms/def/reactive-oxygen-species 

Ruocco, N., Costantini, M., & Santella, L. (2016). New insights into negative effects of lithium on sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus embryos. Scientific Reports, 6(1). https://doi.org/10.1038/srep32157 

Siebel, A. M., Vianna, M. R., & Bonan, C. D. (2014). Pharmacological and Toxicological Effects of Lithium in Zebrafish. ACS Chemical Neuroscience, 5(6), 468–476. https://doi.org/10.1021/cn500046h 

Viana, T., Ferreira, N., Henriques, B., Leite, C., De Marchi, L., Amaral, J., Freitas, R., & Pereira, E. (2020). How safe are the new green energy resources for marine wildlife? The case of lithium. Environmental Pollution, 267, 115458. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2020.115458 

Electric Vehicles, Lithium-ion battery, Pollution

Electric Vehicles and Batteries

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Globally, the transport sector has long been one of the most reliant sectors on fossil fuels, accounting for 37% of total CO2 emissions in 2021 (IEA, 2023). Transport by road consistently accounts for more than half of the emissions (Figure 1). In an effort to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions, demand for electric vehicles (EVs) has accelerated in recent years and so has the demand for lithium-ion batteries. According to IEA (Goodall, 2021), to achieve net carbon neutrality by the middle of the century, no new fossil-fuel-powered cars can be sold from 2035.

Figure 1: (IEA, 2023)

Automobil giants such as Audi, Mercedes-Benz, General Motors, etc. have all agreed and rolled out plans to stop the production and selling of fossil-fuel-powered vehicles in the next one to two decades (Castelvecchi, 2021, Milman, 2021). Similarly, some countries and cities around the world including Canada, New Zealand and Australian Capital Territory have pledged to phase out new fossil-fuel-powered vehicles in the coming decades (Castelvecchi, 2021, Milman, 2021). Although EVs only made up 4.2% of light commercial vehicle sales in 2020, sales increased by nearly twice compared to 2019 (World Economic Forum, 2021). This figure was duplicated again in 2021 (IEA, 2022). 

While the move towards EVs is quite a certain one today (Figure 2), EVs come with their own set of problems. As mentioned in the previous blog, lithium, the key component of batteries and EVs, has its own environmental and social problems that need to be urgently addressed. 

Figure 2: (Castelvecchi, 2021)

Additionally, the ability to recover and recycle lithium and other resources from EVs and batteries effectively and cost-efficiently remains a pressing issue for researchers and companies. As batteries are hazardous waste, incorrect disposal of lithium-ion batteries will have detrimental environmental impacts and adverse impacts on biodiversity (Castelvecchi, 2021). Realising the severity and scale of this issue, governments are now investing in research centres for metal recycling and have rolled out incentives for battery manufacturing companies to source from recycling firms instead of mines (Castelvecchi, 2021). 

Because it is still less expensive, in most instances, to mine metals than to recycle them, a key goal is to develop processes to recover valuable metals cheaply enough to compete with freshly mined ones. “The biggest talker is money,” says Jeffrey Spangenberger, a chemical engineer at Argonne National Laboratory in Lemont, Illinois, who manages a US federally funded lithium-ion battery-recycling initiative, called ReCell. 

Government policies are helping to encourage this: China already has financial and regulatory incentives for battery companies that source materials from recycling firms instead of importing freshly mined ones, says Hans Eric Melin, managing director of Circular Energy Storage, a consulting company in London.

Due to differences in chemical composition, recycling of batteries is most effective when battery manufacturers recycle their own batteries as they are most aware of their own chemical formula used in batteries (Castelvecchi, 2021). However, the tedious logistics behind this process make this practice a challenging one. Although it is unclear what percentage of lithium-ion batteries are being recycled today, the current capacity to recycle lithium-ion batteries from EVs is far from adequate (Reid, 2022). 

Even though EVs and lithium-ion batteries continue to result in environmental pollution and social issues and it’s recycling sector is nowhere near enough, analysts believe that they will continue to stay and dominate for the time being given their significant reduction in cost making it more economically feasible than ever (Figure 3). 

 

Figure 3: (Castelvecchi, 2021)

 

Reference List

Castelvecchi, D. (2021, August 17). Electric cars and batteries: how will the world produce enough? Nature. https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-02222-1?error=cookies_not_supported&code=227be120-acd6-4d8a-8d8c-966f5a95751e 

Goodall. (2021, February 9). Latest news Archives. Zap-Map. https://www.zap-map.com/category/latest-news/ 

IEA. (2022). Global EV Outlook 2022 – Data product. https://www.iea.org/data-and-statistics/data-product/global-ev-outlook-2022 

IEA. (2023). Transport – Topics. https://www.iea.org/topics/transport 

Milman, O. (2021, November 11). Car firms agree at Cop26 to end sale of fossil fuel vehicles by 2040. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/nov/10/cop26-car-firms-agree-to-end-sale-of-fossil-fuel-vehicles-by-2040 

Reid, C. (2022, August 1). Electric Car Batteries Lasting Longer Than Predicted Delays Recycling Programs. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/carltonreid/2022/08/01/electric-car-batteries-lasting-longer-than-predicted-delays-recycling-programs/?sh=223d632c5332 

World Economic Forum. (2021, February 19). Which countries sell the most electric cars? https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2021/02/electric-vehicles-europe-percentage-sales/ 

Environmental pollution, Lithium-ion battery, Pollution

Lithium-ion battery is the future of renewable green energy – but how clean is Lithium?

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While international organisations such as the United Nations and the International Energy Agency (IEA) have continuously pushed for renewable green energy in recent decades, technological limitations specifically the safe storage of clean energy have remained a major obstacle in implementing renewable energy on a global scale. The invention of rechargeable lithium-ion batteries in 1991 and the continuous breakthrough in lithium-ion battery energy storage capacity in recent years have allowed the commercialisation of renewable energy to become more feasible than ever (International Energy Agency, 2020). The potential to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the two most polluting sectors electricity generation and transportation is especially high (United Nations, 2021).  The development of lithium-ion batteries has been recognised so much so that John B. Goodenough, M. Stanley Whittingham and Akira Yoshino have been awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for their significant contributions to the field in 2019 (see here). 

Figure 1: (United Nations, 2021)

Although lithium-ion batteries play a consequential part in the progression towards renewable green energy, the quest for lithium has been a deadly one to both humans and biodiversity. Lithium mines compete with other industrial and social activities for precious water resources which often leads to social unrest and clashes between local communities and mining companies. An example of this would be conflicts in the Lithium Triangle in South America (parts of Argentina, Bolivia and Chile), home to an estimated 57% of the world’s lithium supply (Liu & Agusdinata, 2020). Geographically located in an already water-scarce area, Salar de Atacama, Chile diverts 65% of its water in the region for mining which unsurprisingly leads to social tensions between locals and mining companies (Katwala, 2018) (Figure 2). 

Figure 2: (Köppel, 2022) 

Apart from competing for resources, lithium mines are also a source of toxic chemicals to the local environment, particularly when mining and extraction processes are not well managed. Chemical leaks pollute water sources and when used for agriculture, contaminate soil and the crops grown which severely threatens the health of both humans and biodiversity (Bolan et al., 2021). Toxic chemical leaks in Tagong, Garzê Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, China have had adverse impacts on the local biodiversity. Fish in the local river has been killed in mass and some have reported sighting dead mammals such as cows along the river likely linked to the consumption of contaminated water (Figure 3).

Figure 3: (Environmental Justice Atlas, 2018) 

Pollution and environmental degradation due to lithium mining is not a problem unique to developing countries like Chile and China. Developed countries including the USA and Australia which are also major producers of lithium suffer similar problems due to reliance on older lithium extraction techniques which require more chemicals (Katwala, 2018). 

“Research in Nevada found impacts on fish as far as 150 miles [around 241.4 km] downstream from a lithium processing operation.” – Katwala, 2018

Figure 4: (Sawyer, 2022) 

The aggressive push for renewable green energy by global institutions and many nations has often overshadowed the environmental cost behind lithium mining and other raw material extraction related to renewable energy. Although the immediate reduction in GHG is a global priority for a livable and sustainable future, negative impacts created during this process must too be addressed. Solving a problem by creating a new one is not a sustainable one. Innovation for cleaner lithium mining and extraction processes (Gu & Gao, 2021) is a possible way forward before another cleaner, more affordable and more efficient way of producing and storing energy is discovered. 

Figure 5: (Bhutada, 2023)

 

Reference List

Bhutada, G. (2023, January 6). This chart shows more than 25 years of lithium production by country. World Economic Forum. https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2023/01/chart-countries-produce-lithium-world/ 

Bolan, N., Hoang, S. A., Tanveer, M., Wang, L., Bolan, S., Sooriyakumar, P., Robinson, B., Wijesekara, H., Wijesooriya, M., Keerthanan, S., Vithanage, M., Markert, B., Fränzle, S., Wünschmann, S., Sarkar, B., Vinu, A., Kirkham, M., Siddique, K. H., & Rinklebe, J. (2021). From mine to mind and mobiles – Lithium contamination and its risk management. Environmental Pollution, 290, 118067. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2021.118067 

Environmental Justice Atlas. (2018). Protests against mining of lithium by the Lichu River in Kangding, TAP Ganzi, Sichuan, China | EJAtlas. https://ejatlas.org/conflict/a-sudden-mass-death-of-fish-in-the-lichu-river-in-minyak-lhagang-dartsedo-county-in-karze-prefecture 

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