Environmentalists sue to block Lithium Americas' Thacker Pass mine in Nevada

Environmentalists have sued the U.S. Bureau of Land Management to block the open pit Lithium Nevada lithium mine proposed by Lithium Americas Corp.

The review and the final record of decision for the feasibility-stage project also known as Thacker Pass were issued in late 2020 and early 2021 during the final weeks of the Trump administration.

Approval of the mine led to Lithium Americas equities jumping in January and gave way to a $400 million capital raise from an underwritten public offering, with proceeds earmarked for the development.

Environmentalist advocates Western Watersheds Project, Great Basin Resource Watch, Basin and Range Watch and Wildlands Defense alleged significant deficiencies in the environmental review for the proposed mine. The lawsuit filed Feb. 26 was the second filed against the mine approval. A Nevada rancher filed a similar lawsuit Feb. 11.

The filing said the Trump administration gave the Thacker Pass project an expedited environmental review that ignored potential groundwater impacts from the project. This alleged rush to approve the mine resulted in the violation of federal conservation statutes and "swept under the rug the mine's serious environmental impacts," according to the filing.

"Renewable energy and electric cars aren't green when they depend on mining that destroys important wildlife habitat and causes extinction," Kelly Fuller, energy and mining campaign director for the Western Watersheds Project, said in a statement.

There may be further claims filed against the project. The rancher, Edward Bartell, sent the bureau a 60-day notice of intent to sue Feb. 11 under the Endangered Species Act. According to a filing by Bartell's legal team, they will amend the initial complaint at the end of that 60-day window to include further allegations outlined in the letter, including a failure to initiate a formal consultation to protect nearby species under the act.

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