Over 4,600 species of vertebrates are under threat due to mineral extraction for materials needed for our transition to clean energy, according to a study published in the journal Current Biology. This includes lithium and cobalt, for example, essential components of solar panels, wind turbines, and electric cars.
The researchers from the Universities of Cambridge and Sheffield, UK, argue that the mining industry should focus on reducing pollution to avoid further losses in biodiversity associated with mineral extraction. “We simply won’t be able to deliver the clean energy we need to reduce our climate impact without mining for the materials we need, and that creates a problem because we’re mining in locations that often have very high levels of biodiversity,” said Professor David Edwards in the University of Cambridge’s Department of Plant Sciences and Conservation Research Institute. “So many species, particularly fish, are being put at risk through the pollution caused by mining. It would be an easy win to work on reducing this freshwater pollution so we can still get the products we need for the clean energy transition, but in a way that isn’t causing so much biodiversity loss.”
Across all vertebrate species, fish are at an exceptionally high risk of diversity loss, followed by reptiles, amphibians, birds, and mammals. The threat is linked to where a particular species lives and its lifestyle: species using freshwater habitats and species with small ranges are particularly at risk.
For this study, the team used data from the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) to analyze which vertebrate species are threatened by mining. Mapping the locations of these species allowed the team to assess the types of mining that are putting species at risk and find the locations with exceptionally high risks.
Not surprisingly, species categorised as ‘vulnerable, endangered, or critically endangered’ are more threatened by mineral extraction than species of lesser concern. For example, watercourses can be affected in many ways, involving hundreds of thousands of square kilometres of rivers and flood plains. Mining sand alters water flow patterns in rivers and wetlands, making some birds more accessible to predators.
Mineral extraction threatens vertebrate species across the tropics, with hotspots in the Andes, coastal West and Central Africa, and Southeast Asia coinciding with high mining density. For example, Ghana’s artisanal small-scale alluvial gold mining threatens important bird areas through environmental mercury pollution.
This study focused on vertebrate species, but the authors say mining is also likely to be a substantial risk to plants and invertebrates.
“There’s no question that we are going to continue to mine – our entire societies are based on mined products. But there are environmental tensions embodied in our use of these products. Our report is a vital first step in avoiding biodiversity loss amidst the predicted drastic expansion of the mining industry,” said Prof. Edwards.
“Wildlife is more sensitive to mining in some regions of the world than in others, and our report can inform choices of where to prioritise getting our minerals to cause the least damage to biodiversity. Future policy should also focus on creating more circular economies – increasing recycling and reuse of materials, rather than just extracting more,” added Dr Leuan Lamb from the University of Sheffield’s School of Biosciences.
Lamb, Ieuan P. et al (2024) Global threats of extractive industries to vertebrate biodiversity. Current Biology, Volume 34, Issue 16, 3673 – 3684.e4