They point to the creation of hundreds of jobs and investments of hundreds of millions of dollars in one of Argentina’s poorest regions. In response to the complaints, the mining companies active here told The Post that they follow environmental regulations and that the lithium boom has yielded benefits for residents. If there’s a problem, they have to kick it aside.” The companies “really think the indigenous are like stones in the road. “It’s like a joke,” said Bruno Fornillo, a researcher at Argentina’s National Scientific and Technical Research Council who studies the impact of lithium mining. Local indigenous communities say they have a spiritual connection with the pools, known as “eyes,” in the Salinas Grandes salt flat in Argentina. At least one of the six communities, Pastos Chicos, already has to have potable water trucked in. Many in the communities also are worried that the lithium plants, which use vast amounts of water, will deepen existing shortages in the region, which receives less than four inches of rain a year. And we know they ought to give something back. “We know the lithium companies are taking millions of dollars from our lands,” said Luisa Jorge, a leader in Susques, one of the six communities around the salt flats. In visits to all six of the indigenous communities, which lie on a mountain-ringed desert about 25 miles from Argentina’s northwest border with Chile, The Post found a striking contrast - faraway companies profiting from mineral riches while the communities that own the land struggle to pay for sewage systems, drinking water and heat for schools.

More in this series: Cobalt in Congo and Graphite in China More in this series: Cobalt in Congo and Lithium in Argentina More in this series: Graphite in China and Lithium in Argentina But the desperate search for the ingredients carries a steep cost. The world has grown reliant on lithium-ion batteries that power smartphones, laptops and electric cars.

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