Cleaner Tech
Battery Recycling Shatters the Myth of Electric Vehicle Waste
Are electric cars really that much better for the environment? With recycling, the question is a no-brainer.
Copper foil at battery recycler Redwood Materials’ Nevada plant. The company is one of a growing number of recyclers whose techniques can help lower the environmental footprint of electric vehicles.
Photographer: Emily Najera/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Making a battery for an electric vehicle typically requires mining hundreds of pounds of hard-to-extract minerals. That’s put a spotlight on batteries’ heavy environmental toll, at least upfront.
But the latest advances in battery recycling, including by leading US battery recycler Redwood Materials, are shrinking EVs’ footprint.