Nevada lithium mine leads to accusations of ‘green colonialism’

Biden has explicitly said he wants the United States to become the world leader in electric vehicles — and he wants to extract the lithium that is key to manufacturing them in the United States.

He said last year that America had to import “nearly 100%” of its lithium from countries such as Australia, Chile and China.

But some environmentalists say extracting more lithium is the wrong approach.

“Mining is actually very harmful to the environment. We have to be very careful how we allow these things,” says John Hader, director of Great Basin Resource Watch.

“We can reduce demand for minerals just by changing habits,” he says. “The only thing that really worries me is that we are missing out on doing other things to address climate change.”

The mine has created rifts within Mr. Hader’s group.

Miller resigned from his board last year after declaring his support for the mine.

“I think climate change is very important, and lithium is very important for the electrification of the transportation industry,” he says.

Mr. Miller is a former academic at the University of Nevada. Some of his research was partly funded by Lithium Americas, but he denied that had anything to do with his position on the mine.

“[Some] Environmentalists will say we should drive our cars less, and we shouldn’t use anything that requires us to pull these minerals up. Nobody would do that,” he says.

Tim Crowley, vice president of government affairs at Lithium Americas, says he considers himself an environmentalist.

He has been an advocate of mining for the past two decades in Nevada — and has been in many disputes with environmentalists who oppose mining projects.

The division is not limited to environmentalists.

Some locals call Sentinel Rock Nipple Rock because of its unusual formation. Every year, a group called the People of Red Mountain come here to remember their ancestors — who they say were killed at Thacker Pass.

The Shoshone-Bannock and Paiute tribes believe this area was the site of an atrocity that occurred in 1865.

“The American cavalry chased people into this area where the mine is currently being dug,” says Kayla Farrell Smith, a member of the Red Mountain People. “They were slaughtered by the American Calvary.” .

“It’s a tragedy, it should be a historic site…Unfortunately, companies haven’t heard about it,” she says.

The objection is that although the land is owned by the Bureau of Land Management, the tribes say it was stolen from local residents, and local members should decide how to use it.

Lithium Americas says there is no evidence of a massacre at the site, and has won in court.

Mr. Crowley also points out that some local Native Americans already work at the mine and support the project – something Kayla also accepts.

This is an incredibly remote area – well-paying jobs are rare.

But for people like Kaila, the history of colonialism is still raw.

She believes the Thacker Pass mine is a typical example of “green colonialism” — the idea that indigenous people are once again being ignored, this time in the name of preventing climate change.

“These are not the people who travel around the world on planes,” she says. “It’s not fair.”

The mine itself is still in its infancy. Lithium will not be produced here until at least 2026, and will go to General Motors.

The concern for Red Mountain residents now is that this mine is just the beginning. There is a lot of lithium here, and there are several companies hoping to extract it.

Mr. Crowley is very open about Lithium Americas’ ambitions in the region.

“There has to be more [lithium] In the United States if it is to achieve self-sufficiency. “There has to be more, there has to be more development.”

If he’s right, the entire region, of stunning natural beauty, could be defaced by lithium mines – all in the name of saving the planet.