"In the full life cycle impact context of lithium batteries, compared to the life cycle impacts of the fossil fuels that they will replace, the impact of the lithium extraction step is a necessary but lesser evil when compared to the extraction of other energy minerals,”

This article was published back on 22 April 202, but still has important relevance today and worth a few minutes of scanning, particularly in reference to LAC's Thacker Pass proposed lithium clay extraction mine.  In cse you missed this article from NECN, below is the link:

https://www.necn.com/lx/is-a-proposed-lithium-mine-in-nevada-the-future-of-renewable-energy/2263346/