When Kristal Lee and her husband bought a new house in Gaston County over two years ago, they envisioned a "forever home" for their young family. But a planned lithium mine is bringing Lee sleepless nights. The 41-year-old's neighborhood is earmarked for a $1.2 billion project by Piedmont Lithium, to produce battery grade lithium going towards US electric vehicle (EV) supply chains. But environmental pushback against Piedmont's project and others in the country underscore how officials' efforts leave residents skeptical of long-term benefits.
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00:00 >> Well, we just started it.
00:02 >> Yeah, so we just moved here two years ago.
00:04 And so we kind of wanted to do the whole, you know, like organic grazing and homestead.
00:12 And so it's not even like a mile, right?
00:16 It's like right across the street.
00:18 And it's like maybe what, 200 feet where they're going to start building the fence.
00:23 So like for sure, like we will see it.
00:27 So we're at a state where we actually don't know what we're doing
00:31 because we don't really have an option of moving right now,
00:34 especially with the economy and inflation and everything.
00:37 And like we go back and forth on this so much, right,
00:40 because we definitely do not want to live here if they do come through.
00:44 We don't want to raise our kids here and risk everything.
00:47 And, you know, so we don't really know what we want to do or what we're going to do, you know.
00:53 >> I mean, if you look at the diagram that they have,
00:55 then you can see the property line, and that's where it is.
00:58 >> Over here is a section where I'm still trying to teach them how to fly outside the law.
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01:32 >> Hey guys.
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01:36 >> Number 20, 21, and I think number 9 is in the back there.
01:42 Those cows are mad right now because they want to move into the other field,
01:50 but I'm making them wait until the rain lets up in the afternoon
01:53 because I have to re-fence a certain section.
01:57 They taught the mothers how to break down fences.
02:01 And they will provide jobs for a period of time.
02:05 They've even said, I believe, 10 to 12 years, maybe 15 at the most, lifespan for the project.
02:15 And they'll leave with billions and then the jobs will be gone.
02:22 And maybe the farms will be gone.
02:24 >> When they first started this, they said they're going to put a solar farm right here.
02:31 And that would power the whole thing.
02:33 I did a little bit of research on that.
02:37 That wouldn't have gotten the first machine running.
02:41 >> Fighting it.
02:42 >> Thank you.
02:42 >> Don't worry.
02:43 >> I'm glad you're fighting it.
02:44 I know you'll get something done.
02:46 >> Okay, thank you.
02:48 >> I am very optimistic that we'll prevail.
02:52 But a lot of the people out here, they're poor.
02:56 They don't know how to push.
02:59 These are the people who have been pushed around all their lives.
03:03 Giant corporations have pushed them around.
03:06 Here's a corporation pushing them around.
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