Mining the sacred – Questions for a sustainable relationship with the Earth
In order to produce and preserve food, deliver electricity, manufacture and operate computers, access networks, data centers, “renewable” solar and wind systems, motorized vehicles (including tractors and electric vehicles) and so much more, our society depends on extracted ores and fossil fuels. Manufacturing one smartphone requires hundreds of substances, including copper, gold, silver, cerium, cobalt, coltan, lithium, quartz, petroleum coke and tin.1 We consumers rarely see industrial-scale, corporate extraction or smelting. We rarely know about the energy and water they consume, the greenhouse gases and toxins they emit, the worker hazards or wildlife habitat losses that occur during routine extractions and processing.
Sign-up to receive current EMF NEWS and most recent BLOGS