The trend towards “clean” mobility is growing steadily, causing an exponential increase in lithium demand. Lithium reserves are therefore an important asset for the countries owning them, opening up opportunities for valuable economic activity. However, lithium mining is not free from social, environmental and health impacts and its extraction is far from being a consensual topic on the regions involved. This paper reviewed the main impacts of lithium exploitation and addressed, in particular, the case of Portugal, ranked as the country with the most promising lithium reserves in Europe. The analysis was based on an application of life-cycle assessment for the case of the Barroso-Alvão region in Northern Portugal. Albeit recognizing the limitations of the study given the scarcity of information, it is possible to envisage the importance of local impacts from lithium extraction specially related to Abiotic Resource Depletion, Ecological Toxicity Potential and Occupational Health Hazards. The conclusion of the study was that it was necessary to properly acknowledge the cultural and social characteristics of the region and account for the local communities' needs and expectations, together with the potential social and economic impacts, for the definition of fair and acceptable policies and pathways for the future.

“清洁”移动的趋势正在稳步增长，导致锂需求呈指数增长。因此，锂储备是拥有它们的国家的重要资产，为有价值的经济活动开辟了机会。然而，锂开采并非没有社会、环境和健康影响，其开采远非有关地区达成共识的话题。本文回顾了锂开采的主要影响，并特别讨论了葡萄牙的案例，该国被评为欧洲锂储量最有前景的国家。该分析基于对葡萄牙北部 Barroso-Alvão 地区案例的生命周期评估的应用。尽管认识到该研究的局限性，因为信息稀缺，可以设想锂提取对当地影响的重要性，特别是与非生物资源枯竭、潜在生态毒性和职业健康危害相关的影响。研究的结论是，有必要正确认识该地区的文化和社会特征，并考虑到当地社区的需求和期望，以及潜在的社会和经济影响，以便确定公平和可接受的政策和未来的道路。