32 making, uses only 75,000 gallons of water per ton of steel produced (Reed, 2016). Possible water scarcity and the subsequent negative local effects have already started appearing in some places. In neighboring Chile’s Salar de Atacama, 65% of the region’s water was consumed by mining activities, which is having a negative effect on the local farmers (Katwala, 2018). Should lithium extraction increase in coming years, local water consumption rates should be in the forefront of Argentine lithium mining concerns. Argentina’s mining efforts could also expose the local population to the harmful effects of extended lithium exposure. Exposure to lithium can lead to side effects ranging from nausea or diarrhea to quite severe effects like impaired consciousness, visual or tactile hallucinations, and even coma or death in extreme cases (Harris, 1981). Some of the milder effects of lithium exposure already are being seen, and a study conducted in Argentina concluded that the drinking water in the Argentinian Andean Mountains should be screened for contamination (Broberg et al., 2011). The massive evaporation pools used to process raw lithium are not sealed in any way to isolate them from the ground underneath, so toxic chemicals can leak into the groundwater and surrounding habitat disrupting ecosystems and even human habitat. Locals from the Salta and Catamarca provinces have alleged that local lithium mining operations have contaminated water sources used by humans for irrigation and rearing livestock (Katwala, 2018). Argentina needs to take steps to prevent such disasters from occurring and to keep mining efforts from turning fatal toward the local human as well as natural populations. There are serious ramifications that new mining effortsmight have on existing small local economies. A large part of the local population, especially the indigenous population, living in rural areas close to lithium mines depends on agriculture or livestock herding. The sheer volume of water consumption and the possible toxic leachate from these mining operations pose significant harm to local ecosystems and in turn the surrounding agricultural economies. The indigenous Colla communities residing in and around the lithium triangle already are living with these negative effects. They claim that the mining efforts have caused their llamas to be “born with disabilities and diseases, with crooked legs and cysts,” thereby damaging their herds and diminishing their capabilities to sustain local agricultural economies (Götze, 2019). Moreover, the destruction brought about by larger mines is hurting local tourism efforts in these areas. The indigenous population of Salinas Grandes claims that their recent ventures in tourism are at risk from lithium mining (Gutman, 2019). Indigenous communities increasingly have resisted new lithium mining efforts on their land because of these negative effects, but more needs to be done (Frankel & Whoriskey, 2016). Argentina needs to pass legislation immediately to ensure safeguarding local communities from these negative effects. Multiple alternatives to lithium extraction from brine have been identified over the years that offer comparable results without consuming large volumes of water. Methods, such as solvent extraction, ion-sieve adsorption, electrochemical processes, and membrane technology, have been shown to work with lithium extraction from brine and already are being used to obtain other valuable minerals (Liu et al., 2019). These alternatives should be mandated for the extraction process instead of the conventional evaporation process. Currently, the pools are simply dug into the ground without any form of sealant, which means a high probability of toxic water seepage. To prevent this, Argentina should require pools be lined with leakproof materials. The ponds should be clay-sealed and lined with a plastic membrane made up of reinforced Hypalon or PVC (Garrett, 2004). This would keep any toxic water from seeping into and contaminating the local water sources. Argentina also should establish strong regulations to ensure indigenous populations around lithium mines are adequately compensated. Collectively such requirements would go a long way toward insuring the health and well-being of the local communities and their surrounding ecosystems.
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