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Mining impacts

A responsible energy transition

Nature Sustainability volume 6, pages 124–125 (2023)Cite this article

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Huge volumes of a diverse range of minerals are required to shift the world to renewable energy. An analysis now shows that many of these are being sourced from the lands of vulnerable people.

The material requirements of the energy transition are far larger than is usually realized. Production of even a common material such as iron must double, copper nearly treble and lithium increase by a factor of five. To find out where these extra resources will be obtained, Owen and colleagues mapped the location of 5,097 mining projects that together cover an area of nearly 60,000 km2 across the world. Of these, 69% are on or near land that qualifies as Indigenous peoples’ or peasant land with nearly 20% qualifying as both. Over three-quarters of known reserves of lithium, manganese, graphite and platinum occur on lands of one or the other group.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Research Institute for the Environment and Livelihoods, Charles Darwin University, Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia

    Stephen T. Garnett

  2. Northern Institute, Charles Darwin University, Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia

    Kerstin K. Zander

Authors
  1. Stephen T. Garnett
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  2. Kerstin K. Zander
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Correspondence to Stephen T. Garnett or Kerstin K. Zander.

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The authors declare no competing interests.

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Garnett, S.T., Zander, K.K. A responsible energy transition. Nat Sustain 6, 124–125 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-022-01007-2

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