Lithium mining approved by the Portuguese government

The Portuguese government has approved the controversial mining of lithium in the country

The Portuguese Ministry of the Environment has given its approval to the controversial mining of lithium. As a result, mining will be allowed to go into operation in six different areas of the country, while local residents cite huge ramifications for the environment.
Lithium has recently become one of the most sought-after commodities on the planet. Savannah Resources, a London-based mining company, has claimed that Portugal could be home to as much as 60,000 tons of reserves of this ‘white gold’.
Used for decades in the electronics and pharmaceutical industries, lithium has become a crucial ore metal. Its mining though has led to claims by residents in the immediate vicinity of existing mines, of air pollution, and deforestation.
Paulo Fernades, the mayor of Fundão has said, “It will never be possible, I would say, for the municipalities, but also for the administration, and even for the government, that mining will take place in what is one of the main assets of agricultural production where there is such large investment. Besides, there are urban centres within this same area”, he pointed out.
Provisional permission to extract this lucrative ore in the mountainous area of Barroso has been granted to Savannah Resources. This is also a protected area. The argument put forward by the company is that over the next 15 years, a revenue exceeding €1.3 billion could be generated by a mine in Covas do Barroso.
Despite the company’s claims that its mine would provide employment for around 800 local residents, the mayor of the municipality of Boticas, which includes Covas de Barroso, has said 95 per cent of its residents will reject any plans for a mine in the area, as reported by euronews.com.

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