The War Below
Lithium, Copper, and the Global Battle to Power Our Lives
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4.3 • 6 Ratings
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- $14.99
Publisher Description
LONGLISTED FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FOR NONFICTION AND THE 2024 FINANCIAL TIMES AND SCHRODERS BUSINESS BOOK OF THE YEAR AWARD
This unprecedented look inside the global battle to power our lives is “required reading for anyone interested in the 360-degree impacts of the energy transition” (Daniel Poneman, former US Deputy Secretary of Energy) from acclaimed Reuters reporter Ernest Scheyder.
To build electric vehicles, solar panels, cell phones, and millions of other devices means the world must dig more mines to extract lithium, copper, and other vital building blocks. But mines are deeply unpopular, even as they have a role to play in fighting climate change and powering crucial technologies. These tensions have sparked a worldwide reckoning over the sourcing of necessary materials, and no one understands the complexities of these issues better than Ernest Scheyder.
The War Below reveals the explosive brawl among industry titans, conservationists, community groups, policymakers, and many others over whether the habitats of rare plants, sensitive ecosystems, Indigenous holy sites, and other places should be dug up for their riches.
With accessible and “illuminating” (Chris Miller, author of Chip War) writing, Scheyder shows the human toll of this war and explains why recycling and other newer technologies have struggled to gain widespread use. He also expertly chronicles Washington’s attempts to wean itself off supplies from China, the global leader in mineral production and processing. The War Below paints a powerfully honest and nuanced picture of what is at stake in this new fight for energy independence, revealing how America and the rest of the world’s hunt for the “new oil” directly affects us all.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Journalist Scheyder debuts with a thorny chronicle of domestic and international clashes over the mining of lithium, copper, gold, nickel, and other minerals key to shifting away from fossil fuels. As one company executive company remarks, "You can't have green energy without mining." But staving off the worst effects of climate change comes with its own scourge, as Scheyder makes clear through discussions of a series of ethically complex cases: Should lithium be mined on isolated Nevada hillscapes if the digging threatens a rare flower found nowhere else on Earth? How much more damage should Indigenous peoples endure to the Arizona lands they hold sacred? Can a North Carolina farming community hold off a company that intends to mine land adjacent to their properties if they refuse to sell? Well-acquainted with the finely tuned business calculations and relentless political jockeying that surround these mining operations, Scheyder explains how companies try to work with, and also outwit, environmental advocates, government whistleblowers, and locals trying to preserve their ways of life. David vs. Goliath battles butt up against very real planetary perils in this evocative account of the energy transition's myriad complexities.
