Last year’s climate-focused Inflation Reduction Act,For new electric cars to qualify forunder the act, at least 40% of the value of the “critical minerals” that go into their batteries must be extracted or processed domestically, or in countries such as Canada or Mexico that have free-trade agreements with the United States. Graphite One is one of just three companies currently advancing graphite mining projects in the United States,.
It’s too early to know how, exactly, the mine’s construction could affect the surrounding watershed. One reason is that the level of risk it poses is linked to its size, and Graphite One has not yet determined how big its project will be. But experts say smaller-scale spills or leaks from the mine could still drain into the basin and harm fish and wildlife.
Alfred Kakoona, 45, cuts up his morning’s catch of fresh salmon, a staple food for the Indigenous peoples of the Seward Peninsula, on the beach at Brevig Mission. There are no Teslas in Brevig Mission or Teller, the two Alaska Native villages closest to the proposed mine.