nickel
Credit: Renaldo Matamoro/Unsplash
Indonesian nickel industry expands, causing deforestation
Indonesia's rapid expansion of its nickel industry, driven by demand for electric vehicle batteries, is leading to significant deforestation and environmental damage.
Victoria Milko, Ed Davey, and Camille Fassett report for The Associated Press.
In short:
- Indonesia has dramatically increased its nickel smelting capacity, now responsible for over half of the global nickel ore supply.
- Deforestation has more than doubled around new nickel smelters, leading to increased landslides, polluted rivers, and loss of wildlife habitats.
- Local communities suffer from the environmental impacts, with reduced agricultural yields, contaminated water, and loss of income from traditional hunting and fishing.
Key quote:
"The damage to the environment is devastating. Deforestation has significantly increased ... rivers are polluted, mangroves are cut to develop smelter areas, coastal areas and coral are being damaged by the smelters."
— Timer Manurung, chairman of Auriga
Why this matters:
Indonesia’s nickel production is vital for the global electric vehicle market, but it comes at a high environmental cost. Sustainable practices and cleaner energy sources are essential to mitigate these impacts and support local communities.
Keep reading...Show less
Credit: stefanophotographer/Bigstock Photo ID:456264981
Report outlines cost of Indonesia’s EV dream as Chinese-funded nickel plants linked to pollution, ‘land grabbing’
A report has accused a Chinese-funded industrial estate of causing ‘significant’ environmental destruction and violating the rights of indigenous people.
| BigStock Photo ID: 277673662 |
| Copyright: BackyardProductions |
Can the world make an electric car battery without China?
From mines to refineries and factories, China began investing decades ago. Today, most of your electric car batteries are made in China and that’s unlikely to change soon.
Top Story
Dennis Sylvester Hurd/Flickr/Commercial use & mods allowedhttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/
The underbelly of electric cars: Where all those EV batteries come from
Mining and processing the minerals needed to meet the growing demand for EVs can be costly for workers, local communities and the environment.
Photo by Karl Hörnfeldt on Unsplash
E.P.A. to tighten limits on mercury and other pollutants from power plants
A new rule would reduce mercury, arsenic, nickel and lead emissions, which the Biden administration said would protect public health.
mateo williford/Flickr
The EV mining rush could come to Montana’s mountains
A company announced it found the country’s highest-grade rare earth deposit in Montana.
Adam Cohn/Flickr
Workers are dying in the EV industry’s ‘tainted’ city
In Indonesia, sickness and pollution plague a sprawling factory complex that supplies the world with crucial battery materials.
ORIGINAL REPORTING
MOST POPULAR
CLIMATE
