AI could help find new sources for lithium, cobalt, copper and nickel more quickly and, theoretically, with less environmental degradation than previous methods.
A new report from McKinsey sets out how businesses and government can work together to preempt potential shortfalls in supplies of nickel and rare earth minerals.
Mike Werner, Google’s head of circular economy, says companies should move quickly to measure their reliance on critical minerals such as lithium, cobalt and copper.
A boom in small-scale gold mining in Bolivia has raised concerns about pollution from mercury used in the mining process. Researchers are citing the health impacts on downstream villages, but the government has yet to act to stem the widespread use of the highly toxic chemical.
A mining boom in mountainous Argentina, Chile and Bolivia, home to half the world’s lithium reserves, could drain vital ecosystems and deprive Indigenous communities of water.
