Bolivia’s lithium reserves
Did you know that half of the world’s lithium reserves are in Bolivia? I discovered this little-known fact on the Radio 4 programme “From Our Own Correspondent”.
It may well be that Bolivia is sitting on a gold mine, with future technological developments requiring ever more lithium, there is talk of Bolivia having a similar role to play to that of Saudi Arabia in the oil industry. The question is: will the country benefit as a whole?
This is not the first time that Bolivia has been the main supplier of a particular commodity – much of the world’s silver originally came from the cerro rico in Potosí. It is said that during the time that Bolivia was a Spanish colony, enough silver was shipped back to Spain to build a bridge across the Atlantic Ocean! The colonial powers literally depleted the country of a rich resource, even using slave labour to remove the silver from the mines.
In recent years there have been discussions about the way contracts with neighbouring countries or multi-national companies were negotiated – often benefiting a few but not the population as a whole.
So will it be different with lithium? Are the salt flats of Uyuni in danger or being exploited? And are the people of Bolivia in danger of losing another precious resource?
Lanzarote Guidebook – Autumn Edition
The Autumn edition of the Lanzarote Guidebook has been released and is available as a free download from the Lanzarote Guidebook Website.
The 96 page guide, written by long term island residents, includes up-to-date information about the resorts on the island, and also details of events in the coming months such as the Costa Musica festival in Costa Teguise next week.
It also includes essential information such as the opening times of banks, prices of taxis and emergency telephone numbers.
Published in A6 format, the guide is distributed free to tourists on the island, but if you would like a printed copy before you leave – and you live in the UK or Eire – then you can order a copy on the website.
