EV Industry Still Linked to Child Labor Mines

December 14, 2023

As the eco-left and Biden Administration continue to push for more electric vehicles, it is important that Americans understand where the materials needed for an EV come from and how they are mined. A recent report shows that cobalt mines in Africa are likely still using unethical labor to source the minerals needed for EVs. 

Fox News report, 

“The American Energy Institute (AEI), the Energy & Environment Legal Institute, the Competitive Enterprise Institute, the Heartland Institute, the Committee for a Constructive Tomorrow, the International Climate Science Coalition, and Truth in Energy and Climate jointly assembled the report, which draws from existing studies and establishes that child labor likely continues to fuel EV production worldwide. The research argues that rechargeable lithium-ion batteries, which are by far the most prevalent type of battery installed in EVs, are particularly dependent on cobalt. The world’s largest established cobalt reserves and production, however, exist in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), an African nation with a checkered human rights record.”

The eco-left conveniently forgets about the human rights laws that are violated to produce the “clean energy” technologies.

“There is no such thing as a clean supply chain of cobalt from the Congo. All is tainted by various degrees of abuse, including slavery, child labor, forced labor, debt bondage, human trafficking, hazardous and toxic working conditions, low wages, injury and death, and incalculable environmental harm,”’ the report states.”

Most rare earth minerals needed to produce solar panels, electric vehicles, and wind farms are mined in countries with oppressive labor laws, such as the Congo or China. It’s likely your electric vehicle relies on unethical labor practices. 

Does this qualify as “clean energy”? Hardly.