Sponsor
Funding was provided by the National Science Foundation (NSF) Human-Environment and Geographical Sciences Program Award # 2215409; and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Award # 84055601-0. This publication was developed under Assistance Agreement EPA STAR Grant RD-84055601.
Published In
Geoforum
Document Type
Pre-Print
Publication Date
2-1-2026
Subjects
Lithium Mining -- Oregon, Renewable energy, Political ecology, Imaginaries, Mining
Abstract
Extraction of lithium, a key ingredient for renewable energy transitions, is a land- and water-intensive process. In this study, we use qualitative, place-based research to explore socio-environmental imaginaries surrounding a landscape on the verge of change due to lithium mining. We examine the ways that different actors are wrestling with the costs, benefits, and uncertainties of potential open-pit lithium mining in Oregon’s section of the McDermitt Caldera. In contrast to previous research which has described support for mining amongst those closest to the mine site, we find that in this case, perceptions of mining are characterized by ambivalence, uncertainty, and recognition of complexity and nuance. We note the ways in which tradeoffs, scalar tensions, connections to the local landscape, and uncertainty and unknowns are generating a prevailing sense of ambivalence around mining futures in the McDermitt Caldera. As the demand for critical minerals continues to rise, there is a growing need for place-based research to understand specific impacts of and reactions to potential extraction in areas on the verge of transformation. The expansion of critical mineral extraction for energy transitions generates internal conflicts and competing socio-environmental imaginaries.
Rights
This work was authored as part of the Contributor's official duties as an Employee of the United States Government and is therefore a work of the United States Government. In accordance with 17 U.S.C. 105, no copyright protection is available for such works under U.S. Law.
Locate the Document
DOI
10.1016/j.geoforum.2026.104536
Persistent Identifier
https://archives.pdx.edu/ds/psu/44467
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Citation Details
Bartholomew, E., Cantor, A., Berry, K., & Vineyard, N. (2026). “We’re going to tear up the Caldera so we can have an electric car”: Wrestling with prospective lithium mining in the Oregon desert. Geoforum, 169, 104536.
Description
This is the author’s version of a work that was accepted for publication. Changes resulting from the publishing process, such as peer review, editing, corrections, structural formatting, and other quality control mechanisms may not be reflected in this document. Changes may have been made to this work since it was submitted for publication. A definitive version was subsequently published as: We’re going to tear up the Caldera so we can have an electric car”: Wrestling with prospective lithium mining in the Oregon desert. Geoforum, 169, 104536.