The Short Cut: Unsafe pollutant found in nickel mine used for EV batteries, and more

Tesla has switched the battery cells for its standard-range cars. The company will use iron-based, lower priced batteries for those cars, which have been regarded as a less efficient option due to their lower driving range, a result of lower energy density. The iron batteries, also known as lithium iron phosphate batteries, are usually rejected in favor of nickel, cobalt and manganese core-based batteries. However, iron batteries, which are currently used in 10% of EVs, are much cheaper – opposed to nickel batteries, which saw a doubling in price last year. The Financial Times reports on Tesla’s decision to switch batteries, as well as the repercussions for the car industry. Lower range EVs might become standard if other carmakers follow Tesla’s lead – something which is becoming more of a viable option as infrastructure changes in order to meet demands for more EV charging stations.

Unsafe levels of hexavalent chromium (Cr6), which is the same pollutant in the Erin Brockovich story, has been found in the largest nickel mine in Indonesia. Nickel, which is a key component in EV batteries, has the potential to bring prosperity to Indonesia, where poverty is on the rise. However, people living on Obi Island have become fearful of contaminated water, with numbers of sick people rising since 2020.

More than 900 cases of acute respiratory infections (ARI) have been reported in the village of Kawasi, which has a population of 4,000. More than half of the cases were found in toddlers or newborns. Febriana Firdaus and Tom Levitt, reporting for the Guardian, investigated this claim by taking water samples 200 meters from the mining site. The government-tested results suggested high levels of contamination, increasing the risk of contact with Cr6, and in turn putting the local inhabitants at risk for liver damage, reproductive problems and, through long term exposure, liver cancer.