The hidden cost of powering your phone might be someone else’s cancer

As the world races to secure rare earth elements for tech and defense, residents of Baotou, China bear the brunt of toxic pollution and displacement.

Amy Hawkins reports for The Guardian.

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In short:

• Baotou is China’s rare earth capital, fueling global tech and military industries while dealing with toxic waste and widespread health problems.
• Residents living near tailings ponds have faced cancer, birth defects, and neurological disorders linked to exposure from mining byproducts.
• While Beijing touts environmental cleanup and economic progress, local communities have been displaced, and evidence of illness and contamination persists.

Key quote:

"Large-scale extraction quite often proceeds at the expense of the health and well-being of surrounding communities, pretty much regardless of the context."

— Julie Klinger, associate professor at the University of Delaware

Why this matters:

China calls Baotou its “rare earth capital,” and it’s not exaggerating. More than 80% of the country’s known reserves are extracted and processed here. But what’s left behind after the magnets and metals are separated is an environmental nightmare — tailings ponds leaking toxics substances, and ghost towns where farms once fed generations. While Beijing talks up cleanup efforts and green growth, those living closest to the waste say the truth is much dirtier. Global tech giants and defense contractors rely on Baotou, but its people are paying with their health. The rest of the world rarely looks back

Read more: In push to mine for minerals, clean energy advocates ask what going green really means