An Environment Canada report obtained by the Canadian Press under the Access to Information Act spells out that Canada’s environmental regulations have lagged behind the global rush to develop deposits of lithium.
“The Metal Mining Effluent Regulations do not specifically regulate all of the individual substances of concern that might be released from the mining or processing of rare earth elements and lithium,” says the report. The regulations “were not specifically designed to manage the environmental aspects of these mining processes.”
Last summer, Environment Canada ordered a review of the lithium and rare earths sector in anticipation of surging interest and “to ensure that the current requirements of the (regulations) are adequate,” The Chronicle Herald reported.
Lithium economist Daniela Desormeaux of market intelligence company SignumBox told reporters this week that she expected demand to continue to grow at a healthy rate...