Scientists say the factory Tesla is building in Germany would exacerbate local climate change issues.
When Elon Musk was asked last year whether the factory Tesla Inc. was constructing in Germany would deplete the area’s water supply, he broke out in bellowing laughter and called the notion “completely wrong.”
Six months later, water is one of the primary reasons the plant still isn’t producing vehicles.
While Musk in August flippantly pointed to water “everywhere” around Berlin, the region is suffering from falling groundwater levels and prolonged droughts due to climate change.
That’s sparked a legal challenge that will go to court next week and an acknowledgment from local authorities that supply will be insufficient once Tesla ramps up the plant.
The issue has the potential to further delay or even stop the 5 billion-euro ($5.7 billion) project in what could turn into a costly setback to the carmaker’s expansion.
“Tesla will increase the problem for sure,” said Irina Engelhardt, who heads the hydrogeology department at Berlin’s Technical University. “There might not be enough water for everyone.”
Brandenburg Drought
Groundwater levels close to Tesla’s Berlin plant are declining.
The Nabu and Gruene Liga groups sued Brandenburg’s environment office last year, saying it failed to take into account the impact of climate change when approving a 30-year permit to pump more groundwater for Tesla’s factory.
Authorities say the issue is manageable and that they’re already looking for additional supply.
A decision in favor of the environmentalists would likely delay the plant’s opening and could derail it altogether.
A first court hearing is scheduled for March 4.
Tesla’s factory would roughly double the amount of water consumed in the Gruenheide area, according to Axel Bronstert, a hydrology professor at the University of Potsdam.
He said it’s “naive” to think reserves would suffice for both the factory and residents, and called the groundwater situation in Brandenburg “serious.”
Thirsty Work
It takes thousands of liters of water to make a single car.
As per a contract with local authorities, the Gruenheide site would get 1.4 million cubic meters of water annually — enough for a city of around 40,000 people.
Steinbach said that while he’s taking the environmental concerns very seriously, the large majority of the local population is in favor of the factory.
Brandenburg authorities are backing efforts to drill for more water in the area and supply could also be sourced from further away if necessary, he said.
But digging new wells probably won’t make the concerns disappear.
Manuela Hoyer, who lives just a few miles from the factory, says Tesla is getting preferential treatment from local politicians even though it would make an already serious environmental issue worse.
“We’ve been told for years that we shouldn’t water our lawns,” Hoyer, who is active in a citizen’s initiative monitoring the project, said in an interview. “Then the world’s richest man comes along and gets everything he wants!”
Source: Bloomberg
