is this similar to e3 metals?
I am sure there are real experts looking into this..and there is probably something that is in the plans to deal with this.
Maybe someone more knowledgeable can throw some light on this. Lithium extraction needs fresh water throughout the recovery cycle.
Do you mean it'll just be drier and therefore suck more water out of the local ecosystem?
There's a whole infographic in the article explaining this.
> Hot brine is pumped up from deep underground, generating heat which is converted to electricity. Then, lithium is extracted from the brine before the fluid is injected back underground.
Pretty brilliant, really. There's already a geothermal energy site right there, so the whole lithium mining business could potentially be powered with zero emissions.
If they really do need freshwater, there's a ton of it - the Colorado River Aqueduct goes right by the Salton Sea. In fact, that's how it was created in the first place.
If they really need freshwater for this, they will have to fight a lot of people for it.
Indeed, if we gave up on farming in the area, we could cut an aqueduct from the Sea of Cortez and restore the Salton Sea to a thriving inland riviera. The real estate and tourism revenues would likely more than make up for the farming revenues.
With indoor ag, they can be substituted..but at great cost. California ag is ridiculously uber optimized and on very thin margins. We feed millions. Abs cheaply. Mostly because we convert fossil fuels into calories. And forex. We sacrificed our dairy industry because it’s cheaper to export alfafa to China in shipping containers than to truck it within CA. The economies of scale is messed up. But because we exported thirsty alfafa during a drought ..we were essentially exporting water for china’s dairy industry. Once again using fossil fuels.
Having said that, central coast/Monterrey/Salinas region will deal with salt water intrusion in max 30 years…guaranteed. Central Valley is already having to deal with ground water contamination. Our aquifers risk running dry with every subsequent drought.
We are better off with every metric from conservation, carbon sequestration to water usage efficiency if we did away with the badge of pride(over $50 billion worth..highest in nation..far second is Iowa at 25 something.) that is CA Big Ag(rather diff from National big Ag).
However, ag in Ca supports a crap ton of jobs that can’t be replaced. Most of them are low paying or middle class jobs. We are a state with a large teacher/tenured profs population, service sector and many many unionized essential jobs. This demographic has to be supported. Minimum basic income won’t cut it because they come with pension benefits. So now we have a problem that Sacramento cannot solve if they interfere with status quo.
Don’t know what the solution is..but the problem is obvious and glaring. Most of this Ag sector is going to disappear when the cheapest resource…land and water becomes useless to the big industrial farmers who have grandfathered water rights.
California ag and water rights is intricately connected to its politics. It’s just a matter of creating a powerful energy lobby to supplant the ag one in Sacramento. But it won’t be easy. Their reach goes as far as D.C. but certainly doable.
I only hope that when CA ag crashes…and it will within 3 decades max..we are self sufficient for our food supply and energy.
Why would they use potable (AKA drinking) water for lithium extraction from the brine? Nothing in the described extraction process involves potable water.