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Not to derail the conversation but I really am genuinely confused about the high level of concern about cobalt and lithium mining I often see in comments on HN.
by JamisonM 5y ago
Not to derail the conversation but I really am genuinely confused about the high level of concern about cobalt and lithium mining I often see in comments on HN. I understand that it is a dirty and difficult process but the entire petroleum-based supply chain is dirty and difficult.
Is there some solid research out there that indicates that the footprint of this mining practice is much worse?
- notreallyserio 5y agoIt really is the go-to gotcha for electric car opponents. I've found if you push back and point out the problems with ICE production and use they have no response.
- milkytron 5y agoIs it though? I'm generally opposed to continuing to invest so much in car centric infrastructure, and that's pretty much my gripe with EVs. They're still cars, they will further entrench our dependence on roads, which encourage sprawl, a sedentary lifestyle, yada yada yada. I could go on and on. I'm sure they're better than ICEs, at least for the nearby environmental impact they have. But they still require hugely expensive and inefficient transportation infrastructure.
- notreallyserio 5y agoYeah, most arguments against EVs that I've seen have to do with the battery (or range). I'm with you about cars in general. They're never going away, though, so we might as well make the least impactful cars that we can.
- JamisonM 5y agoI think opposing car-centric urban planning is orthogonal to ICE vs EV issue but I understand the perspective. You're not going to tear up every city in North and South America and make them better planned on a timeline that is helpful to automotive emissions so the answer is EVs plus better zoning laws, move both in the right direction at the same time.