Thread by @themadstone

Two years ago, Apple said it wants to stop mining the Earth "one day."
For garbage week @Gizmodo, I took a deep dive into what that means and whether it's even possible.
Short answer: Not until Apple overhauls its entire business model. earther.gizmodo.com/behind-the-hyp…

Longer, more complicated answer: A smartphone contains literally dozens of metals. To stop mining any of them, Apple has to find new sources of materials, from manufacturing scrap to recycling. Every metal poses a host of different challenges from chemistry to economics.

Some metals, like aluminum, are well recycled today, others like the rare earths are barely recycled at all. For Apple to stop mining these metals, entirely new types of separations chemistry may need to be invented and then scaled up.

There's also the hugely important issue of making devices that last longer, are upgradeable and repairable. In a capitalist world we can't recycle our way out of our reliance on extractive industries—we need to consume less and Apple needs to make that possible.

Reporting this piece honestly left me with more questions than answers because Apple is so... cloak-and-dagger. But I hope it sheds a little light on what an immense challenge the company has put forth. It would be great if Apple is serious about it. We'll just have to see.