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File:  ltr to Congress, 76 scientists 2012.pdfResource Type: Letters

File:  ltr to Congress, 76 scientists 2012.pdfResource Type: Letters

The major US banks have been financing the climate crisis behind our backs for far too long. Tuesday March 21st will be a nation-wide day of action where we can tell our banks that we’ve had enough, and they need to divest from fossil fuel projects that continue to plunge us towards a future where we face more floods, more heatwaves, and other impacts to our lives from the heating climate. More info about the campaign can be found here, and stay tuned for info about a local action in San Francisco.

Every year, tens of thousands of birds flock to Lake Abert as they journey from parts of the Great Basin toward the Pacific flyway, a migration route that extends from Alaska and Canada, through California, to Mexico and South America.

Michigan State University and the National Audubon Society are teaming up to help protect declining bird populations across North America.

Michigan State University researchers have solved a puzzle that could help switchgrass realize its full potential as a low-cost, sustainable biofuel crop and curb our dependence on fossil fuels.

A University of Queensland-led study has shown that expanding global seaweed farming could go a long way to addressing the planet’s food security, biodiversity loss and climate change challenges.

A newer, more accurate method for calculating methane emissions from offshore oil and gas production suggests that the United Kingdom severely underestimates its greenhouse gas emissions.

National Express West Midlands is investing £150 million in 300 UK-made electric zero emission buses, for delivery by the end of December 2024 when the buses will be deployed across the West Midlands.

MET Group has completed construction of the MET Gerjen solar farm and MET Söjtör solar farm which have both now entered commercial operation.

Avis Budget Group and EverCharge, an SK Group company, have launched a significant number of EV charging stations at the George Bush International Airport (IAH) in Houston, Texas. The stations will power Avis and Budget’s fleet of EVs and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) available for rent at the airport. 

Grenergy, the listed renewable energy producer and specialist in the development, construction and management of photovoltaic, wind and storage projects, has obtained positive Environmental Impact Statements for three photovoltaic plants in Spain totalling 472 MW,

Biogas and biomethane are generated from different types of organic residues, turning waste into a valuable resource. A recent study shows that the increasing amount of compostable bioplastics in our waste can be collected and processed with no ecological risk to produce biogas, supporting the development of renewable energy in Europe.

Official results from the pan-European EVOLVE project involving world-leading academics, research institutions and technology developers have been released providing a firm evidence base supporting the acceleration of ocean energy in Europe's future energy system.

Orange announced the close of its $2.5M pre-seed round to scale affordable electric vehicle charging for apartment communities by leveraging lower-powered charging solutions. Founded by former Tesla engineers and backed by prominent electric vehicle investors, Orange endeavors to create an affordable charging network from the ground up that provides site owners with a compelling return on investment while maintaining equitable costs bringing EV charging to more disadvantaged communities.

Duke Energy Sustainable Solutions, a nonregulated commercial brand of Duke Energy has placed into commercial operation the 120-megawatt (MW) Jackpot Solar project in Twin Falls County, Idaho. This is the organization’s first utility-scale renewable energy project in the state and is the largest solar facility in operation in Idaho.

UK electric vehicle consumers are set to benefit from lower energy bills and cheaper motoring thanks to a plan introduced by the government to unlock the potential of smart electric vehicle charging. The Electric Vehicle Smart Charging Action Plan sets out steps being taken to seize on the significant potential of smart charging.

Ingeteam has announced that it has signed an agreement with Matrix Renewables, the global renewable energy platform backed by TPG Rise, under which the two companies have agreed to supply 500 MW to equip seven photovoltaic plants during 2023.

Mental health and the importance of psychological health and safety in the workplace were spotlighted at the annual Health and Safety awards breakfast at the Association of Mineral Explorers (AME) Roundup conference in Vancouver this week.

The event, held on Wednesday, also celebrated this year’s Safe Day Everyday Gold Award recipients, Boart Longyear and Eldorado Gold Quebec.

While major miners such as Rio Tinto and BHP have campaigns focused on targeting bullying and harassment and Teck Resources, Anglo American and Newcrest have dedicated mental health initiatives, keynote speaker Michelle Hohn, principal at Akashic Communications, pointed out that juniors and even mid tiers can have glaring human resources gaps as employees suffer burnout in silence.

Hohn emphasized the importance of finding ways of integrating psychological health and safety (PHS) initiatives into corporate cultures — no matter how small the company.

Hohn clarified the definition of psychological safety as the absence of harm and/or threat of harm to mental well-being that a worker might experience. A psychologically healthy and safe workplace is defined as a workplace that promotes workers’ psychological well-being and actively works to prevent harm to workers.   

She also introduced the audience to some chilling statistics: In 2021, the cost of health insurance claims in Canada related to mental health reached a staggering C$40.8 billion ($30.6bn). The Mental Health Commission of Canada reported in any given week, 500,000 Canadians are unable to work due to mental health issues. 

“In 2019, approximately 300 million people lived with anxiety, 280 million people lived with depression, and 703,000 people died by suicide,” Hohn said.

She pointed to the National Standard of Canada’s workplace psychosocial factors known to positively impact an employee’s mental health, psychological safety, participation, and productivity.

Hohn’s advice regarding addressing gaps in a company’s HR and integrating psychological health and safety into an organizational structure include due diligence checks, reviewing and updating policy landscapes, incorporating aspects of PHS into risk assessment and communicating performance in sustainability reporting.

“Start small — start now,” she advised.

British Columbia is never going to be a major lithium producer – it just doesn’t have the geology.

But a number of Vancouver companies are capitalizing on a “white gold” rush in South America as well as Nevada – a rush spurred by good geology, a mature mining jurisdiction, skyrocketing lithium prices, and American energy and domestic supply chain security policies.

One locally based company is poised to become a major producer – Lithium Americas (TSX, NYSE:LAC).

With a market cap of over $4 billion (as of 10:15 a.m. on Jan. 26) and two prized deposits – in Argentina and Nevada – Lithium Americas is among the top 10 largest pure-play lithium mining companies in the world by market cap, according to a number of rankings.

Meanwhile, another Vancouver company, American Lithium Corp. (TSX-V:LI), began trading on the Nasdaq earlier this month under the stock symbol AMLI. American Lithium has two development projects – one in Peru and one in Nevada – and a market cap of more than C$999.25 million ((as of 10:15 a.m. on Jan. 26).

“Obviously we have a major project in the U.S.,” American Lithium CEO Simon Clarke told BIV. “A U.S. listing makes a lot of sense.”

Focusing on Nevada also makes a lot of sense. Nevada is rich in minerals, including lithium, and is a mature mining jurisdiction.

Lithium, which has been alternatively called “white gold” and the “new gasoline” is critical not only to lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles and electronics. Lithium prices have soared, from US$6.75 per kilogram in January 2021 to $57 per kilogram in February 2022.

Increasingly concerned about energy security, the U.S. has adopted policies to promote and subsidize certain industries, including the mining of critical minerals. Nevada is now being touted not just as a lithium mining hot spot, but a “soup-to-nuts” lithium hub.

“Nevada is a very good mining state,” Clarke said. “They understand mining intimately. And strategically, you’ve heard Tesla (Nasdaq:TSLA) and Panasonic and other parts of the lithium supply chain start to set up in Nevada as well.”

Of the Canadian companies with lithium projects in Nevada and-or South America, Lithium Americas is the most advanced. It is developing the Caucharí-Olaroz, a lithium-carbonate brine project in Argentina, and the Thacker Pass lithium mine in Nevada. The Caucharí-Olaroz project is being developed in partnership with Ganfeng Lithium (OTC:GNEN.F), China’s largest lithium producer.

With a capital cost of $852, the new Argentinean mine is expected to produce 40,000 tonnes of battery-grade lithium-carbonate annually. Commissioning of the new mine is underway, and it is expected to be in production in the first quarter of this year. The project is now being spun out as a separate company – Lithium International.

Lithium Americas’ wholly owned Thacker Pass lithium project in northwest Nevada is also forecast to produce 40,000 tonnes annually in a first phase, and up to 80,000 tonnes annually after a second-phase expansion. The project is approved by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and is fully permitted.

A legal challenge launched by a handful of local conservation groups and some Native American tribe members aims to overturn the mine’s approval. A district court heard an appeal to overturn the BLM’s approval of the Thacker Pass project Jan. 6. A decision is expected in a couple of months.

The Thacker Pass mine’s capital cost is estimated at $1 billion – with $581 million for the first phase.

Mickey Fulp, investor, geologist and publisher of the Mercenary Geologist, is no fan of lithium and owns no lithium mining stock. But he concedes the Thacker Pass project has the right geology to become a significant lithium producer.

“Thacker Pass is the largest lithium deposit in the United States,” he said. “But it has some economic and technical challenges, in my opinion.”

One of those challenges is its geological nature – clay stone – which requires a novel metallurgical process for refining.

Fulp’s biggest skepticism with respect to lithium, however, is that at some point some chemical substitution may be developed that replaces lithium in batteries.

“They’ve run a 46-year mine life,” Fulp said of the Thacker Pass project. “The economics look good. But you can’t project 46 years. You don’t even know if lithium is going to be a viable battery or something else is going to happen in five or 10 years.”

(This article first appeared in Business in Vancouver)