Lithium Extraction Project , Worries Those Who Rely on , Water From Colorado River.
Lithium is used to manufacture electric vehicle batteries.
A new plan to extract lithium in Utah has raised concerns about how the project could impact the Colorado River, Fox News reports.
The Paradox Basin, a geologic formation shared by Utah, Colorado, New Mexico and Arizona, has been analyzed by an Australian company and its U.S. subsidiaries.
The Paradox Basin, a geologic formation shared by Utah, Colorado, New Mexico and Arizona, has been analyzed by an Australian company and its U.S. subsidiaries.
The basin's groundwater has been found to be rich in lithium salts and other minerals left over from millions of years ago when the area was repeatedly flooded and drained.
Australia-based Anson Resources has also reportedly acquired rights to freshwater sourced from the nearby Green River.
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The company's plans have given rise to questions about how the groundwater and river water are interconnected, in addition to the impact of lithium on the environment.
'The Guardian' points out that the Green River is a tributary of the crucial Colorado River, which supplies water for 40 million people in the West.
We need to have a renewable+ energy transition, but maybe we shouldn’t be looking for these kinds of quick-fix energy solutions on a drought-stricken river, Lauren Wood, a third-generation resident of Green River, Utah, via Fox News.
Geologists and Earth scientists have cautioned that it remains unclear how water-intensive the process of direct lithium extraction actually is.
The technology is too new for much of a commercial track record to have been established, Michael McKibben, professor at the University of California, Riverside, via Fox News.
Ultimately, Utah's water rights division will make the final decision regarding water permits for Anson and its U.S. subsidiaries, a process which could take months or years
