The dark side of electric vehicle production

One of the 100% NETA V electric vehicles showcased by MOJA EV Kenya Limited to convince digital taxi drivers to go green at Sameer Business Park in Nairobi on May 31, 2024. [Robert Tomno,Standard]

In a world striving for sustainable solutions, electric vehicles (EVs) have emerged as a promising alternative. Phasing out fossil fuel-powered vehicles and transitioning to electric ones is a great way to mitigate urban pollution and greenhouse gases; hence countering global warming.

Well, this is what proponents of green and clean energy have been pushing the world to do.

However, peeling back the layers reveals the glitter that is not gold. It is a case of ethical dilemmas and environmental contradictions, with the heart of the issue residing in the production of EV batteries.

Unlike internal combustion engines, the key dorsum of electric vehicles, or EVs as they are known, is their batteries, which are produced from cobalt and coltan.

While other countries like Russia, Australia, Cuba, Canada, Madagascar and Papua New Guinea, The Democratic Republic of Congo accounts for around 70 per cent of the world’s cobalt deposits.

The Great Lakes nation also has around 80 per cent of the global coltan deposits. This is the nation that has been the leading source of the minerals that have been powering the world’s electric vehicles in its quest for a green and clean energy revolution.

Beyond Cobalt and Coltan, the DRC, the largest nation in Sub-Saharan Africa, is rich in minerals such as copper, gold, tantalum, zinc, cassiterite, manganese, coal and silver.

Others are cadmium, germanium (used in the production of semiconductors), gold, palladium, uranium, and platinum. The country is also full of hydropower potential, arable land, biodiversity, and the world’s second-largest rainforest only surpassed by the Amazon.

Statistics from the documentary “Congo My Precious” on YouTube reveal that in 1960, the DRC supplied 60 per cent of the world’s uranium, 70 per cent of its cobalt, and 70 per cent of its industrial diamonds.

Today, the world’s essential gadgets including cell phones, laptops, and other technologies are made from coltan, chiefly and cheaply sourced from DRC. Additionally, the DRC contains lithium, crucial for EV batteries, and other minerals like wolframite, tourmaline, tungsten, and wood. According to Amnesty International, most of the hardwood furniture sourced that deck many households in Kenya and the region is sourced from DRC and South Sudan. Asian nations, led by China, have particularly coveted the wood from this nation.

Despite its abundant mineral wealth, the DRC remains one of the world’s poorest nations. In 2022, nearly 62 per cent of Congolese, roughly 60 million individuals, subsisted on less than $2.15 (Sh280) a day.

Sadly, approximately one out of six people living in extreme poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa reside in the DRC, according to the World Bank Group.

Regrettably, the majority of the Congolese population has not reaped the benefits of the country’s vast resources. Persistent conflict, political instability, authoritarian governance, and a prolonged humanitarian crisis have marred the nation’s development trajectory.

According to the World Bank, DRC’s mining sector remains its main driver of economic growth. However, this economic activity and its output have proven to be more of a curse than a blessing.

Chris Ocamringa, an international journalist with CGTN from DRC highlights the challenges of community involvement in mining operations in his country, noting that while the constitution guarantees the right to benefit from natural resources, “that constitutional right only exists on paper.”

He explains, “The people in power have connived with the foreign investors, neighbouring countries; Rwanda and Uganda... to extract minerals and sell them.” Since Mobutu’s regime, corruption has allowed authorities to exploit resources with foreign investors, leaving locals a disenfranchised lot.

Pervasive corruption

However, there’s a 2022 law that aims to protect Indigenous land rights, a significant step forward, but enforcement remains uncertain due to pervasive corruption and constant meddling by regional and international nations and other entities.

Addressing the challenges faced by residents in mining regions, Ocamringa mentions several community-led initiatives aimed at cleaning up the mining industry, which is plagued by corruption.

Chris references efforts like traceability systems, certification, and due diligence conducted by locals in collaboration with international NGOs. These initiatives are crucial because, as studies have shown, “a lot of the conflicts, especially in eastern DRC, are fuelled by the illegal exploitation of these minerals.”

Nevertheless, he points out the challenges, noting that the State remains weak in many remote areas, allowing armed groups to exploit minerals and terrorise residents.

“Until the political leaders take full control... we are still going to be seeing this injustice meted out on the ordinary people,” Ocamringa remarks, emphasising the long road ahead despite these commendable community efforts.

Thousands of families have been displaced to make way for mining operations, leading to environmental degradation as forests are cleared.

According to a July 19 article by Djaffar Al Kantanty on Reuters, armed groups are profiting from the production and trade of wooden planks in North Kivu. Illegal and uncontrolled logging has resulted in the destruction of significant swaths of virgin forest in the protected areas of Virunga.

Reportedly, the extraction process raises concerns about unethical practices. Workers endure overwork, and underpayment, and suffer from various human rights violations, including physical and sexual abuse, arson, and forced displacement according to a report by Amnesty International.

Some international mining companies have also been blamed for forced child labour and exposing local communities to the deadly effects of environmental pollution.

Despite reforms introduced in the DRC’s mining code in 2017 aimed at penalising child labour, the grim reality persists, with over 40,000 child miners continuing to toil illegally in perilous conditions. These children are often employed as washers and diggers, engaged in the extraction of coltan.

According to data from the Global Forest Watch website, the DRC has witnessed a staggering loss of 8.6 per cent of its tree cover since the year 2000, with mining activities, particularly coltan extraction, identified as a primary driver of deforestation. Significant historical sites such as the Kahuzi Biega National Park, Rutshuru and Nyiragongo are under serious threat of deforestation.

Lack of state control on mining sites allows artisanal miners to flout regulations, causing environmental harm. The manual mineral separation process uses chemicals that contaminate water bodies and generate harmful radioactive substances.

Moreover, it is well-documented that women bear the brunt of this pollution, as it frequently targets reproductive systems and influences the composition of breast milk, thus impacting the health outcomes of future generations.

Human rights advocate Isaac Kavalami stresses the need for stronger political leadership to protect workers in mineral extraction for EV batteries.

He advocates for traceability of minerals, local processing, and selling only finished products internationally to create jobs. “To ensure local communities benefit, companies must set up operations in Congo,” says Kavalami.

The exploitation of coltan mines by both associated businesses and local and global governments in the DRC has resulted in egregious human rights violations, continuing a vicious cycle of poverty and violence. Despite being a mandatory requirement under mining laws, coltan mining companies seldom provide

A November 2023 update from the Centre for Preventative Action reported rising violence, with high civilian casualties and displacement due to territorial conflicts, extrajudicial killings, political violence, and tensions with neighbouring countries.

Nearly seven million people are now internally displaced due to ongoing violence, extreme poverty, and expanding mining activities. Many multinational corporations are vying for a slice of DRC’s rare minerals. For instance, the Congolese army is frequently deployed to mining sites in eastern DRC to protect Chinese assets.

This reflects China’s dominance in the global cobalt market, a situation that originated from a 2009 deal with the Congolese government. Chinese companies not only control the mining concessions but also dominate the entire supply chain up to the battery level.

This extensive control raises concerns about the ethical and environmental standards applied throughout the production process. Dr Andrew Wambua of Africa Voices Dialogue, while acknowledging the role of electric vehicles, stresses the need for a more comprehensive approach.

He advocates for adopting various renewable energy solutions such as solar, wind, geothermal, and hydropower. “Transitioning to these clean energy sources is crucial for moving away from fossil fuels and mitigating the impacts of global warming,” he says

According to California YIMBY, an American pro-real estate movement, the world needs to stop embracing electric vehicles as an alternative the dirty fossil energy.

“The mining of lithium, cobalt and nickel requires a huge amount of water and can produce toxic waste,” says one of its reports.

“Fossil fuels are used in the manufacturing process to heat the raw minerals to very high temperatures. As a result, building an EV can produce 80 per cent more emissions than building a comparable gas-powered car.”

Biggest emitters

Indeed, production of the EV batteries in China is powered by coal energy, making it one of the biggest emitters besides Russia, the United States, India and Japan. Despite Africa’s relatively small share of global greenhouse gas emissions, he believes that integrating clean energy solutions is essential for improving our climate outlook by 2030.

Prof  Peter Kagwanja, a historian, highlights that the issues in Congo are part of a long-standing problem rather than a recent one. He explains that Congo’s richness in minerals makes it cheaper and more cost-effective for foreign entities to exploit the region by maintaining chaos.

“If you are a Westerner, a French, Belgian, American, British, Dutch, or Chinese, you get access to these minerals at a cheaper price without having to pay taxes to a government,” says Prof Kagwanja.

The Prof explains that the genocide in Rwanda was linked to the scramble for resources in Congo because many Rwandans, including Hutus involved in the genocide, took refuge in eastern Congo.

Efforts to reach any government official in Congo or even a Chinese representative in the mining companies were futile by the time of publishing.