Stantec workers undertaking a mine-area-water environmental survey at a site in Nova Scotia. Courtesy of Stantec

There is near international consensus that for the world to decarbonize, the mining sector must ramp up its production of critical minerals. But in the process of producing the raw materials for electrification needed to slow climate change, the water-dependent mining industry risks contributing to another concern: the availability of fresh water. Forces of industrialization, agriculture, climate and population have endangered this essential resource. Between 2019 and 2022, the mining industry’s worldwide water consumption increased by 25 per cent, according to the International Energy Agency.