THIS eerily stunning place is Salar de Uyuni, the world’s largest salt flat. It lies on the crest of the Bolivian Andes and covers over 10,000 sq. kilometres. However under its gorgeous floor, hassle is brewing. The demand for electrical automobiles and the lithium batteries they require is booming, and Bolivia desires to take advantage of its lithium assets. The nation’s state-owned mining firm opened its first industrial-scale lithium plant (pictured under), close to Uyuni in December 2023.

Photographer Matjaž Krivic has been visiting the realm since 2016, charting the consequences of lithium mining. His {photograph} of the flat (proven above, in the primary image) was taken with a drone in 2017 and exhibits native salt miners loading their truck with salt. Krivic says the evaporation ponds of lithium manufacturing amenities will draw closely on the area’s scarce freshwater, and that llama herders and quinoa farmers are anxious.

Ten years in the past, Bolivians had been speaking about their nation turning into the Saudi Arabia of lithium, says Krivic. “This has taken a very long time, however now they’ve opened their first industrial-scale lithium plant, the issues for locals round water shortages will actually begin.”