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The curse of 'white oil': electric vehicles' dirty secret – podcast

The race is on to find a steady source of lithium, a key component in rechargeable electric car batteries. But while the EU focuses on emissions, the lithium gold rush threatens environmental damage on an industrial scale. By Oliver Balch.

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Pictures of the Decade<br>An aerial view of the brine pools and processing areas of the Rockwood lithium plant on the Atacama salt flat, the largest lithium deposit currently in production, in the Atacama desert of northern Chile, January 10, 2013. Picture taken January 10, 2013. REUTERS/Ivan Alvarado/File Photo SEARCH "POY DECADE" FOR THIS STORY. SEARCH "REUTERS POY" FOR ALL BEST OF 2019 PACKAGES. TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY.
Photograph: Iván Alvarado/Reuters
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