The War Below: Lithium, Copper, and the Global Battle to Power Our Lives

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. (Jan.)