Recently, an investigation carried out by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) revealed a significant findingboth at a sociopolitical and commercial level for the North American country.
This American scientific authority affirms that large quantities of lithium have been identified in the Appalachian Mountains, located in the east of the nation. Researchers estimate that the deposits contain about 2.3 million tons of lithium oxide. This is reported by the specialized magazine, through one of his publications.
Lithium is commonly known as “white gold”; This is no coincidence. It should be noted that this natural resource plays a fundamental role, electric cars, computers, military technology, among other aspects.
With the amount of lithium located by the USGS, 180 billion laptops and even 500 billion mobile phones.
The US plan and the environmental challenge
According to the German newspaper, the administration led by the president has made clear its intention to create a “vault project” with the aim of conserving critical minerals and protecting manufacturers from supply shortages. In this sense, the lithium deposit detected in the Appalachian Mountains fits perfectly with the government’s vision.
It is relevant to mention that the US currently imports more than half of its lithium; If he manages to reverse this circumstance through the exploitation of the deposits, marking a before and after in international commercial relations.
However, the extraction of the metal would generate serious environmental repercussions. Open pit mines, habitat invasion, pollution from debris and chemicals greenhouse gas emissions would increase.
On the one hand, lithium mining would considerably boost the economy of the North American country; However, the environmental impact that this activity would cause cannot be ignored.
