A journey to the heart of Chile's lithium communities
By Paul Messad | EURACTIV.fr | translated by Anna Martino and Daniel Eck
Apr 11, 2023
Lithium is key in the production of electric batteries in digital appliances and vehicles, making it a critical raw material for the clean energy revolution in Europe and beyond. [hecke61 / Shutterstock]
In Chile’s Atacama Desert, indigenous communities live alongside lithium mines, a key mineral for the EU’s energy transition. EURACTIV travelled there to find out how industry interests are balanced with the needs of the locals – particularly regarding water management.
At the end of the Río Putana River, 3,000 metres above sea level and wedged between the Barros Arana mountain range to the west and the Andes to the east, lies the village of Río Grande.
Río Grande is home to the indigenous Lickanantay people, who have inhabited the Atacama for millennia. The Río Putana River, which runs through the village, provides all the water necessary for cultivating the land and raising animals, creating a natural oasis in an otherwise arid region.
However, the delicate management of the area’s water resources has increasingly become a challenge for the village’s inhabitants; less than 100 kilometres from the village, a new industry is taking hold.
Lithium of Atacama
Under a saline crust spanning over 700 square kilometres are lithium deposits, the volumes of which are unlike anywhere else in the world.
More:
https://www.euractiv.com/section/energy-environment/news/a-journey-to-the-heart-of-chiles-lithium-communities/
