Major lithium discovery in fracking wastewater leaves the left facing EV ‘irony’
Major lithium discovery in fracking wastewater leaves the left facing EV ‘irony’
One Democrat welcomed the news, calling it an opportunity for job creation and reduced reliance on China
Published June 8, 2024 4:00am EDT
Biden flip-flops on fracking
The discovery of the potential for thousands of tons of lithium to be extracted annually from wastewater generated by fracking in the Marcellus Shale leaves proponents of a green energy future at a crossroads, Republicans said Thursday.
A University of Pittsburgh study suggested processing byproducts from natural gas production in Pennsylvania’s Marcellus Shale basin could potentially meet nearly half of U.S. lithium needs. The typical electric vehicle (EV) requires nearly 18 pounds of lithium to power its battery. That figure grows exponentially for Teslas, according to reports.
Rep. Guy Reschenthaler, R-Pa., who represents much of the Marcellus territory, told Fox News he wants to see those on the left change their tune.
“Now nearly 40% of our nation’s domestic need for lithium can be found right here as a byproduct of fracking,” he said. “I fully expect every single Democrat to join Republicans in supporting domestic natural gas development.”
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“[There are] 100,000 union jobs the industry supports in Pennsylvania alone,” Reschenthaler said, while criticizing progressives in the Democratic Party for opposing the same fossil fuel speculation that led to the reported lithium boom.
“Under the Biden administration, Republicans have fought to unleash American energy while Democrats increased our dependence on China and other foreign adversaries with their disastrous rush-to-green agenda,” he said.
In the study, published in Nature’s “Scientific Reports,” estimates of annual lithium yields from Pennsylvania’s Marcellus Shale totaled 1,278 tons. The Marcellus Shale range covers large swaths of Pennsylvania, New York, Ohio and West Virginia.
One of the researchers, Justin Mackey, told KDKA that in addition to supplying substantial amounts of lithium, processing the wastewater in that way “reduce[s] the cost of remediating and handling” it, adding there may likely be similar lodes of lithium in West Virginia and Ohio shale deposits that could lead to an “economic boom.”
One top Pennsylvania state lawmaker expressed delight at the discovery and, like Reschenthaler, called on Democrats to come to the table.
State Sen. Doug Mastriano, the GOP’s 2022 gubernatorial nominee, said common ground should be found on the prospect of fracking to produce both natural gas and electric battery components.
Doug Mastriano (Fox News)
“The great irony is the same climate extremists who oppose harvesting fossil fuels under all circumstances are dependent on lithium for solar panels and for the battery components they need for things like electric cars, which often are powered on electricity generated by natural gas,” he said.
“Fracking may provide the cleanest, most environmentally friendly way to produce natural gas energyand harvest the domestic lithium we need for the green future endorsed by my colleagues on the extreme left.”
Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy, a Republican who has battled the Biden administration over its stringent energy regulatory adjustments, said “what America needs most is more energy, not less,” and that the Pennsylvania lithium discovery has the potential to change the U.S. energy game.
“We also need to store the energy for when the wind’s not blowing and the sun isn’t shining. If we can develop lithium, an essential component of EVs and batteries, as a byproduct of legacy oil and gas production, that is a win-win for America,” he said.
Pennsylvania’s senior senator, Democrat Bob Casey Jr., struck a positive tone over the development, highlighting the potentially multifaceted value of such mineral lodes.
“This is an opportunity to source a critical mineral right here at home to both support American jobs and manufacturing, as well as reduce our reliance on countries like China,” Casey said.
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