Chapter 143: The Book of Death (1)
The drive from the gas station to the city took two hours, and along the way there should have been nothing but wilderness.
But this time, when they were halfway there, Everly was surprised to see a busy construction crew out in the open fields beyond the car window.
“Grandpa, what’s that?”
Old John glanced outside casually and told Everly that it was a construction team hired by a mining company.
While Everly had been away at college, the city of Micano had been quietly changing.
Sometime around June this year, employees from the U.S. Geological Survey discovered a new lithium deposit in the wilderness southeast of Micano. It was said to have astonishing reserves.
Not long after the news spread, a mining company called McMurkin signed an agreement with the government. They invested heavily in building facilities near the deposit—factories, dormitories for miners, and more—planning to begin lithium extraction there.
Micano lies to the east of the Iramore Mountains, surrounded by wilderness. Its remote location has long severely restricted its economic development. The arrival of the mining company not only brought job opportunities to local residents but was also expected to attract a steady influx of newcomers from nearby cities, boosting the local service sector.
However, everything has its pros and cons. Lithium mining requires large amounts of water and produces wastewater rich in heavy metals, which can lead to soil salinization and air pollution. And since Micano is already a water-scarce city surrounded by desert, this raised concerns among environmentalists.