Transitioning to clean energy is one way to address global climate change and also embrace the spirit of caring for our common home. However, increased demand for clean energy drives an increase in the mining of critical minerals — including lithium, cobalt, nickel, and copper. Often, these materials are located on or near Indigenous lands. A recent study found that of 5,097 mining projects involving these critical minerals, approximately 54% are located on or near Indigenous peoples’ lands. While these minerals are intended for clean energy, the extraction methods are far from “clean.”
In most instances, when transnational companies set up mining operations to extract these minerals from the earth, they displace Indigenous peoples, threaten their way of life, destroy the landscape, pollute the soil and water, and destroy natural habitats. These actions violate the principles of Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC), recognized in Article 3 of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples’ (UNDRIP) right to determine how and when minerals are extracted from their lands.
At the United Nations’ 44th Semi-Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues held in April, the RSHM co-sponsored an NGO Mining Working Group panel, Extractives, Critical Minerals, Land Grabbing and Just Transitions from the Lens of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples: Good Practices and Challenges. Representatives from Argentina, the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Flores Islands, and Papua shared the negative impact these mining operations have had on the peoples and their land.
The Lithium Triangle, also known as the Triple Frontier, covers part of Chile, Bolivia, and Argentina. This area is home to 6% of the region’s lakes. Known as the Salt Flats, a fragile hydrological ecosystem above sea level, it is home to a variety of fish and birds. Water is needed not only to sustain the environment, but also the Indigenous peoples that live there. Industry extraction of lithium destroys both the area’s natural beauty and fragile ecosystem. The lithium extraction process entails perforating the rock containing lithium, then submerging the rock in an extremely large amount of water. As the water evaporates, the chemical compounds separate, leaving the lithium behind. Indigenous peoples in the Argentinian part of the Triangle are no longer able to fish in these waters as a result of these practices. Despite the damage they have caused, transnational companies from the US, Canada, and China continue to expand their extraction efforts to meet demand.
Similarly, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has a wealth of coveted natural resources. The demand for cobalt, needed for EV batteries and cell phones, has tripled in the past years. The world’s largest cobalt deposits, 80% of the world’s supply of coltan (a key component in many electronic devices), and the world’s 7th largest copper deposits are found in the DRC. Four million metric tons have been removed so far with an estimated 7.6 million metric tons in reserves. The untapped value of mineral deposits in DRC is valued at $24 trillion.
While multinational companies and governments, including the US, Canada, and China, continue to secure mineral rights and mining operations in the DRC, the Rwandan army, seeing an opportunity for themselves, has taken over the DRC’s mineral-rich eastern region bordering Rwanda, displacing Congolese through violence and destroying entire communities.
In Indonesia, the government works hand-in-hand with the mining companies, disregarding Indigenous peoples’ rights in both the Flores Islands and Papua. While Indonesia is considered a democratic republic, its current leader has expanded the military’s role in government.
In the Flores Islands, water used to irrigate rice fields is diverted for mining projects, thereby degrading water quality and reducing agricultural yields. Yet, companies continue to expand their mining sites.
In Papua (the western half of Papua New Guinea), the Indonesian government allowed mining companies to commence operations, despite having negotiated a separation agreement with Papua in 1999. Eventually, Papua became a province of Indonesia. Government “investment zones” created near military bases resulted in conflict and the displacement of Indigenous populations. Native Papuans who don’t move face racial discrimination and intimidation. As the “outsider” population grows in Papua, the more than 250 Indigenous communities continue to decline as their very existence as distinct cultural and ethnic groups is threatened.
To truly care for our common home, structural, economic, cultural, sustainable, and political change is needed. “A true ‘ecological debt’ exists, particularly between the global north and south, connected to commercial imbalances with effects on the environment, and the disproportionate use of natural resources by certain countries over long periods of time (Laudato Si’ 51).” Working together, we can find equitable solutions to our quest for sustainable energy while addressing climate change and caring for the earth.