A proposed miner claims it will use no evaporation ponds and deplete no water, occupying a significantly smaller footprint than other extractors on the lakebed.
“We think we can do this without evaporating anything,” said Raef Sully, chief operating officer for Lilac Solutions, “and putting the same volume back that we take out.” in July to appropriate the equivalent of 73 billion gallons from the Great Salt Lake annually. That’s enough water to support nearly a half million conservation-minded households in the West.last year. But Lilac Solutions notes in the application that its request is for non-consumptive use, an exception the governor carved out in his order.
The company’s water right application has received two protests from Utahns wondering why a private business should be allowed to use so much from the lake when farmers and cities have made significant cuts to save it. Demand for lithium has surged both in the United States and abroad as nations look to electrify their grids and transportation systems in an effort to curb human-fueled climate change.