The weirdest ways scientists are mining for critical minerals, from water to weeds

The weirdest ways scientists are mining for critical minerals, from water to weeds

Since ancient history, mining has been a dirty business. While we’ve developed new tools, chemicals, machines, and techniques, most of today’s mining still boils down to digging in the dirt. As the world ramps up production of the technologies it needs to move away from fossil fuels, this widespread disturbance of Earth and ecosystems will continue in the accelerating search for critical minerals like lithium, cobalt, nickel, and rare-earth elem…