Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances abbreviated to PFAS are a diverse group of thousands of chemicals. They may enter our food chain through plants and animals raised, or processed in contaminated areas. Business Insider calls them ‘forever chemicals’ because they take thousands of years to break down. Scientists have discovered that some lithium batteries cause PFAS pollution.
How Do Some Lithium Batteries Cause PFAS Pollution?
Well first of all, battery makers use PFAS chemicals in some classes of lithium-ion batteries. They do so because they make them conduct electricity better, while being less flammable too. However, forever chemicals may also link to chronic kidney disease, heart disease, high cholesterol, liver disease, and low birth weights according to Business Insider.
The scientists who alerted the world that lithium batteries cause PFAS buildups, found them in Belgium, France, and United States. Or more specifically in air, sediment, snow, soil, and water samples near factories that manufacture batteries there. This information confirms, once again, that renewable energy has some unwelcome co-travelers.
These new, undesirable side-effects are only just coming to the attention of concerned environmental scientists. We already knew of the natural downside of mining lithium and other metals for solar panels, wind turbines and batteries. However, the news that this is also bad for our personal health, none the less comes as an unwelcome shock.
This Surely Is An Issue of Global Concern For All Of Us
Leeching these chemicals into air, sediment, snow, soil, and ground water near factories will surely also occur near battery recycling plants. And also near landfills we imagine with unscrupulous operators. Therefore, every nation that uses lithium-ion batteries is affected, and that means perhaps all of us.
We are particularly concerned by the scientists’ finding that only about 5% of lithium-ion batteries are recycled. And that by 2040, there could be some 8 million tons of lithium-ion battery waste. This will lie in dump sites for thousands of years, contaminating generation after generation of little children.
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Environmental Impact of Lithium Mining
