On Friday he ordered remaining ones back to the office, The housing market is shiftingjust look at earnings published by 2 giant Fortune 500 homebuilders, CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice, Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information. UPDATE 3-Trudeau points to 'slave labor' in China lithium production "Because we put forward environmental responsibility as something we actually expect to be abided by. With regards to Tesla, I dont foresee any problems.. The DRC produced approximately 74% of the world's cobalt in 2021. And I'm afraid that . other batteries. They use pickaxes, shovels, stretches of rebar to hack and scrounge at the earth in trenches and pits and tunnels to gather cobalt and feed it up the formal supply chain. But in addition, perhaps other cultures could learn from Andean relations with nature as more-than-human beings: an inspiration torethink developmentand turn our own way of living into something less destructive. "If the pandemic taught us anything, if the pandemic taught us anything, it's resilience, redundancy and reliability in our supply chains," Trudeau said. Siddharth Karas plan is to uncover the truth about the brutal, illegal, and underaged mining practices that help produce 75% of the worlds cobalt. WASHINGTON, April 28 (Reuters) - Canadian Prime Minister A lithium producer for car makers including BMW and Tesla is beginning work to assess battery metals projects in Xinjiang, deepening links between electric vehicle supply chains and a region at the heart of human rights allegations against China. Well, you put them in a tight pit, cram them with 10,000 other people and pay them a couple of dollars, and they'll produce thousands of tons of cobalt per year for almost no wages. Oftentimes, digging in these larger open-air pits, there are pit wall collapses. Thousands of tonnes are needed to create wind or solar power devices while electric vehicles use two or three times more copper than those powered by a diesel or petrol engine. Now, add to that the menace in many cases of armed forces pressuring people to dig, parents having to make a painful decision, 'Do I send my child to school or do we eat today?' In some cases, predominantly artisanal mining is taking place. Today, electric vehicles are widely considered part of the solution to theclimate crisis. The Chinese deal representsa new milestone, yetits outcomes are still uncertain: for the economy, for local communities and for the Earth. "Because we put forward environmental responsibility as Lynn Savarese/MacMillan The risks to the EV sector of inputs coming out of Xinjiang is huge, said Emily de La Bruyere, a co-founder of Horizon Advisory, a US-based consultancy focused on forced labour issues. suggested that nearly every major automaker has significant A representative for the Chinese Embassy in Ottawa did not Imagine a mountain of gravel and stone just avalanching down on people, crushing legs and arms, spines. The first democratically elected president of the Congo [in 1960], Patrice Lumumba, made a pledge that the country's immense mineral riches and resources would be used for the benefit of the people who live there. These could be hoovered up using robot submersibles that would criss-cross the 4.5m sq km that make up the zone. And I think that's also a part of this lesson that we need to understand historically, when we talk about things like corruption. Democratic Republic of Congo's cobalt mines, the U.S. Labor Companies in the sector face significant reputational, regulatory, and potentially legal risks stemming from the environmental and human rights practices associated with battery metals mining, he said. Around half of all cobalt comes from the DRC, and no company can validly claim that they are unaware of the human rights and child labour abuses linked with mineral extraction in the region, says Mark Dummett, business and human rights researcher at Amnesty International. Children, too. In November, Canada ordered three Chinese companies to A collection of moments during and after Barack Obama's presidency. The human rights group claims to have traced cobalt used in lithium batteries sold to 16 multinational brands to mines where young children and adults are being paid a dollar a day, working in life-threatening conditions and subjected to violence, extortion and intimidation. This supply chain has not been independently verified by the Guardian. Reuters, the news and media division of Thomson Reuters, is the worlds largest multimedia news provider, reaching billions of people worldwide every day. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Friday suggested that China uses slave labor in the production of lithium as he discussed . His new book called, Cobalt Red: How the Blood of the Congo Powers Our Lives. Stay informed daily on the latest news and advice on COVID-19 from the editors at U.S. News & World Report. I arrived in the morning and would leave the following morning I had to relieve myself down in the tunnels My foster mother planned to send me to school, but my foster father was against it, he exploited me by making me work in the mine.. WASHINGTON, April 28 (Reuters) - Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Friday linked the production of lithium in China to "slave labor" as he discussed his own country's efforts to ramp up production of the metal used in electric vehicle and other batteries. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau accuses China of using slave labour to produce lithium, Catch up with The Loop, your quick wrap of this morning's news. Lithium mining, which is primarily done in South America, is often associated with poor working conditions and low wages for workers. 'Cobalt Red' describes the 'horror show' of mining the element in the The new firm is 49 per cent owned by Ganfeng Zhongkai Mining Technology itself a joint venture between Ganfeng Lithium and Jiangsu Nonghua Intelligent Agriculture Technology Co. with state-backed Xinjiang Geology and Mineral Investment holding the remainder, according to Chinas National Enterprise Credit Informational Publicity System. However,religious conceptssuch as sacred or divine do not necessarily capture the relationships that Andean Indigenous people have long established with thesemore-than-human beings, who have beenknown since pre-colonial times as huacas. These entities are not considered gods, or thought of as dealing with otherworldly beliefs. Some 20,000 people work at Shabara artisanal mine in the DRC, in shifts of 5,000 at a time. respond to a request for comment. Ganfeng said in November it had won a new three-year deal to provide battery-grade lithium hydroxide products to Tesla, and has previously disclosed other contracts with companies including BMW. As a result, the worlds appetite for copper is likely to jump by more than 300% by 2050, according to one recent report. According to the government agency charged with oversight of the informal or. In the so-called Lithium Triangle of South America - made up of Chile, Argentina and Bolivia - vast quantities of water are pumped from underground sources to help extract lithium from ores,. "Because we put forward environmental responsibility as something we actually expect to be abided by. But the level of degradation, the level of exploitation is on par with old-world slavery. Each Andean community praises a nearby mountain whom they believe protects and oversees their lives. Before anyone knew what happened, Chinese companies had seized ownership of 15 of the 19 primary industrial copper-cobalt mining concessions down there. The DRC produced approximately 74% of the world's cobalt in 2021. Children as young as seven are working in perilous conditions in the Democratic Republic of the Congo to mine cobalt that ends up in smartphones, cars and computers sold to millions across the world, by household brands including Apple, Microsoft and Vodafone, according to a new investigation by Amnesty International. According to the Bureau of International Labor Affairs (an agency within the U.S. Department of Labor), Over 70% of the worlds cobalt is extracted from mines in The Democratic Republic of Congo. Tesla, Apple among firms accused of aiding child labor in Congo (Reporting by Doina Chiacu, additional reporting by Ismail Shakil in Ottawa; Editing by Bill Berkrot, Sharon Singleton and Jonathan Oatis). exposure to products made with forced labor. We acknowledge Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Australians and Traditional Custodians of the lands where we live, learn, and work. He says that although the DRC has more cobalt reserves than the rest of the planet combined, there's no such thing as a "clean" supply chain of cobalt from the country. Many privately wonder if this government sanctioned business is more an effort to control price and supply rather than curb human rights offenses. The mines have taken over everything. Their claim is simply not credible, said Mark Dummett. Huayou Cobalt gets more than 40% of its cobalt from DRC. Because we don't use slave labor," Trudeau A recovery in prices would disappoint carmakers. Here's why. Is your phone tainted by the misery of the 35,000 children in Congo's However, the UK still has no method for safely storing nuclear waste underground and relies on keeping highly radioactive remnants from power plant operations above ground. However the mining and processing of these materials often involve many labor and ethical malpractices, such as child labor and borderline slavery. However, recent research by marine scientists have also revealed that despite the Clarion-Clipperton Zones depth it lies between 4,000 and 5,500 metres below the surface the ocean floor there is also rich is sea-life. The most comprehensive solution to manage all your complex and ever-expanding tax and compliance needs. I just want their voices [to] reach the world and then the world will decide what to do with the truth and the testimonies of the Congolese people. All rights reserved. Password, My It documents testimonies from illegal miners and natives involved in the cobalt mining. A representative for the Chinese embassy in Ottawa did not respond to a request for comment. Reuters provides business, financial, national and international news to professionals via desktop terminals, the world's media organizations, industry events and directly to consumers. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. The company pursues a strategy of having projects in multiple countries to help limit the impact of extracting lithium excessively in any single location, it said. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau links the production of lithium in China to "slave labour" and denounces the rise of authoritarianism around the world, calling on democracies to live up to . Siddharth Kara's previous book Sex Trafficking: Inside the Business of Modern Slavery, won the 2010 Frederick Douglass Book Prize, awarded for the best book written in English on slavery or abolition. 34 injured and houses destroyed after Russia launches early morning strikes on Ukraine, US authorities 'auction' First Republic Bank after second biggest bank failure in history, 'Every second is critical': Major upgrade to national emergency messages to receive more than $10m, Donald Trump denied mistrial in rape case brought by writer E Jean Carroll, Environmental group begs French energy giant to reconsider plan to fill Hazelwood coal mine with water, Katharine quit a career in opera to grow heirloom seeds and she has no regrets, Live: Vaping crackdown to include ban on non-prescription imports, Texas gunman on the run. "If the pandemic taught us anything,it's resilience, redundancy and reliability in our supply chains," Mr Trudeau said. I would spend 24 hours down in the tunnels. Both lithium and cobalt mining have a negative impact on the communities around them. WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Friday linked the production of lithium in China to "slave labor" as he discussed his own country's efforts to ramp up production of the metal used in electric vehicle and other batteries. According to the International Seabed Authority, some deposits contain millions of tonnes of cobalt, copper and manganese. This is currently only guaranteed in large-scale industrial mining. And the reason is, it's a penny-wage way to boost production. Russian mercenary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin of the Wagner Group believes Ukraines offensive will begin in days one of several assessments that point to a pending rise in fighting. And the thing is, imagine the Congo. The report, This is what we die for: Human rights abuses in the Democratic Republic of the Congo power the global trade in cobalt, traces the sale of cobalt, used in lithium-ion batteries, from mines where children as young as seven and adults work in perilous conditions. From Stone to Phone Modern Day Cobalt Slavery in Congo (modern). Xinyu, Jiangxi-based Ganfeng prioritises the importance of environmental protection, social responsibility and corporate governance, which includes defending employee rights, the company said in a statement. Build the strongest argument relying on authoritative content, attorney-editor expertise, and industry defining technology. Transaction Status, Reset Yet mining is linked to all sorts of environmental headaches. In December, the United Auto Workers union called on automakers to shift their entire supply chain out of Xinjiang after a report by Britain's Sheffield Hallam University suggested that nearly every major automaker hadsignificant exposure to products made with forced labour. S&P Index data is the property of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. and its licensors. over concerns about forced labor. This Is What We Die For: Child Slaves Made Your Phone Battery - Daily Beast More than half of the world's cobalt comes from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Electric vehicle makers already face criticism over labour concerns and environmental damage tied to the extraction of metals used in their products. to ramp up production of the metal used in electric vehicle and Matt Absalom-Wong. The car maker in a May report disclosed a list of 12 mining and refining companies that are direct suppliers, with Ganfeng included among four lithium producers. The industry leader for online information for tax, accounting and finance professionals. Tesla will act to end relationships with suppliers that do not meet standards, or fail to correct issues of concern in a reasonable time frame, according to the report. Wind and solar plants are set to replace coal and gas power stations, while electric cars oust petrol and diesel vehicles from our roads. For example, when asked by Amnesty International whether it sourced cobalt from CDM or Huayou Cobalt, Microsoft responded by saying: We have not traced the cobalt used through our supply chain to the smelter level due to the complexity and the resources required., These are some of the biggest companies in the world, with combined profits of $125 billion and there is no excuse that companies arent investing some of that profit into ensuring that they can trace where the minerals they are using are coming from, says Dummett. And not just that, they dominate the chain all the way through to the battery level. More than 60% of the world's supply of cobalt is mined in the "copper belt" of the south-eastern provinces of DRC. Chinese firms also own, operate or finance most of the Democratic Republic of Congo's cobalt mines, the U.S. Labor Department said in a recent report. divest from Canadian critical minerals, citing national Lithium Mining & Indigenous Populations | Psychiatry Redefined Kara acknowledges the important role cobalt plays in tech devices and in the transition to sustainable energy sources. The abuses in mines remain out of sight and out of mind because in todays global marketplace consumers have no idea about the conditions at the mine, factory, and assembly line. World production is set to soar over the next decade. Diplomatic tensions between Canada and China have been running high since the detention of Huawei Technologies executive Meng Wanzhou in 2018 and Beijing's subsequent arrest of two Canadians on spying charges. he battle to stave off Earths looming climate crisis is driving engineers to develop hosts of new green technologies. So children are the most heavily exploited of all the people down there. China to "slave labor" as he discussed his own country's efforts But the fact remains that the manufacturing of lithium-ion batteries has led to the occurrence of modern-day slavery. They must take remedial action on the harm suffered by people whose human rights were abused, said Mark Dummett. In the so-called Lithium Triangle of South America made up of Chile, Argentina and Bolivia vast quantities of water are pumped from underground sources to help extract lithium from ores, and this has been linked to the lowering of ground water levels and the spread of deserts. Vodafone, in its response to Amnesty, stated that the company is unaware as to whether or not cobalt in our products originates in Katanga in the DRC both the smelters and the mines from which the metals such as cobalt are originally sourced are several steps away from Vodafone in the supply chain. An artisanal miner holds a cobalt stone at the Shabara artisanal mine in the DRC. 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While some residents are hopeful about the potential benefits of the growing lithium industry, others are concerned aboutextractions local impact. And if they choose the latter, that means bringing all their kids into these toxic pits to dig just to earn that extra fifty cents or a dollar a day, that could mean the difference between eating or not. A new metal-free battery platform could lead to more sustainable, recyclable batteries that degrade on demand. 'Like slave and master': DRC miners toil for 30p an hour to fuel This is because removing these raw materials can result in soil degradation, water shortages, biodiversity loss, damage to ecosystem functions and an increase in global warming (euronews.green). However, extraction initiatives have facedsevere setbacksin the last few years, includingsocial protests, the 2019political crisisanda lack of necessary technology. Asians and Africans, many of them children, are being enslaved and are dying in mines, refineries, and factories to obtain the minerals and metals required for the green energy technologies Democrats are mandating. Isyour phone tainted by the misery of the 35,000 children in Congo's mines? hide caption. "You have to imagine walking around some of these mining areas and dialing back our clock centuries," Kara says. Because we count on working with, in partnership, with Indigenous peoples, paying their living wages, expecting security and safety standards.". Yet they will necessitatea mining surgetomeet their battery demands. Rather than renouncing cobalt entirely, he says people should focus on fixing the supply chain. Trudeau suggests China uses slave labor in lithium production The United States has accused China of using forced labour in sectors including mining and construction. Minera Exar is a Canadian company extracting lithium from the region. A representative for the Chinese Embassy in Ottawa did not respond to a request for comment. Siddharth Kara's previous book Sex Trafficking: Inside the Business of Modern Slavery, won the 2010 Frederick Douglass Book Prize, awarded for the best book written in English on slavery or abolition. Chinese firms also own, operate or finance most of the Democratic Republic of Congo's cobalt mines, the USLabour Department said in a recent report. Because we count Themodern economyturns nature into a source ofraw materials: morally and spiritually inert matter that is there to be extracted and mobilized worldwide. Ties to Xinjiang-exposed suppliers are becoming more problematic for a swathe of industries. Ganfeng has a vast network of operations and projects spanning Australia to Argentina, which could give clients options to avoid the use of raw materials produced from future Xinjiang sites, according to Seth Goldstein, a Chicago-based equity strategist at Morningstar, who covers Tesla and battery supply chain firms. Refining The Catholic Church and the Spanish Empire later used this medieval understanding of matter as something passive, without spirit, tojustify the extractionof resources during colonial times. I pray for change, 'Most renewable energy companies' linked with claims of abuses in mines. Slowly our dependance on fossil fuels is set to diminish and so ease global heating. Browse an unrivalled portfolio of real-time and historical market data and insights from worldwide sources and experts. Which isn't democratic at all. Amnesty International and Afrewatch are calling on multinational companies who use lithium-ion batteries in their products to conduct human rights due diligence, investigate whether the cobalt is extracted under hazardous conditions or with child labour, and be more transparent about their suppliers. running high since the detention of Huawei Technologies Lithium-ion battery prices have plummeted over the past decade or so, yet last year soaring metal prices helped to push up battery costs by 7%. Miners often breathe in cobalt-laden dust, which can prove fatal. "The bottom of the supply chain, where almost all the world's cobalt is coming from, is a horror show. Technically, under the law, there should not be artisanal mining taking place in any industrial mine. At present, we still dont have enough data about the sea floor to be sure what the impact would be of mining there, said Adrian Glover, a deep-sea ecology researcher at the Natural History Museum. Carbon Footprint of Lithium-Ion Battery Production (vs Gasoline, Lead-Acid) Cutting battery industry's reliance on cobalt will be an uphill task, Howthe race for cobalt risks turning it from miracle metal to deadly chemical, Apple and Google named in US lawsuit over Congolese child cobalt mining deaths, Isaw the unbearable grief inflicted on families by cobalt mining. The lawsuit said the children, some as young as 6 years old, were forced by their families' extreme poverty to leave school and work in cobalt mining owned by the British mining company. "If we're honest the lithium produced in Canada is going to be more expensivebecause we don't use slave labour," Mr Trudeau said. security as a pretext and said the divestment order broke One company admitted the connection, while four were unable to say for certain whether they were buying cobalt from the DRC or Huayou Cobalt. Carmakers electric dreams depend on supplies of rare minerals, Mining firms face scrutiny over Congo deals. In Xinjiang, the resource is at an early stage of exploration and its currently uncertain whether theres suitable projects available for future development, Ganfeng said. "Our research shows that lithium-ion batteries are produced with an input cobalt made by child labour," it said. Junior Kannah /AFP via Getty Images Extracting the raw materials, mainly lithium and cobalt, requires large quantities of energy and water. Screen for heightened risk individual and entities globally to help uncover hidden risks in business relationships and human networks. But if I've done some justice to bringing those voices out into the world that can scarcely function without the suffering of the Congolese people, then it's all worth it. Sam Briger and Joel Wolfram produced and edited this interview for broadcast. There they breathe in cobalt-laden dust that can cause fatal lung ailments while working tunnels that are liable to collapse. Despite its mineral riches, the DRC is one of the poorest countries in the world, and has suffered from decades of war and corrupt leaders. Lithium and Cobalt are two crucial components to create electric vehicles and many batteries. Released this week, it reveals a working situation so terrible for those that mine minerals used in smartphones that it borders on slavery. I arrived in the morning and would leave the following morning. 'To make matters worse, miners, including children, face constant risk and are ripe for exploitation,' note the report's authors. Jonathan Oatis). Ganfeng Lithium, Chinas top lithium producer, is partnering through a subsidiary with a state-backed entity to accelerate exploration for and potentially develop lithium, nickel and other critical metal assets in the region. For example, the female divinity of fertility, to whom people owe respect, is thePachamama. law took effect banning imports from China's Xinjiang region If societies really want a greener future, technological shifts such as EVs will be just part of the answer, alongside other changes like more sustainableurban planningand improved public transportation. Prospecting for the materials to construct these devices, then mining them, could have very serious ecological consequences and major impacts on biodiversity, they say.