It is about multi-billionaire Elon Musk’s Tesla, whose car factory on the outskirts of Berlin has in recent years destroyed an area of 3,300 hectares of dense forest – and threatens to “devour” even more.
German activists have released satellite images from Google Earth showing that Tesla’s factory expansion – 35 kilometers southeast of Berlin – is eating up a major green lung in the state of Brandenburg. In fact, the environmental company Kayrros calculates that the acres lost to the benefit of the expansion of Tesla’s facilities, is equivalent to the loss of 500,000 trees. The environmental “crime” took place from March 2020 to May 2023, i.e. the time that separates the two photos.
Since May, German activists have regularly demonstrated against plans to further expand the plant, while earlier in March, a protester set fire to an electricity pylon, shutting down operations for a week.
Carolina Drevo, from the organization “Turn off Tesla’s Tap” (Turn off Tesla’s Tap) underlined that the production of electric cars by Musk’s company is not only destroying German nature, but also causing global environmental damage. This occurs with the increase in mining for precious metals, which are necessary for the electric batteries of the otherwise “clean” vehicles. (As is currently the case in Serbia, with the Rio Tinto lithium mining dispute).
“In one of the driest regions of Germany, where the environment has already been degraded and there is a need to protect drinking water supplies, the expansion of the Tesla factory will cause greater damage,” Ntrevo stressed.
Tesla declined to respond to questions from the Guardian. However, Elon Musk has criticized the German police for their “soft” handling of the “leftists”, who systematically besiege his factory.
The “hostilities” on the outskirts of Berlin are expected to continue, as in July the Ministry of the Environment of the state of Brandenburg gave permission for the expansion of the Tesla factory in order to double its annual production to 1 million vehicles. In addition to the destruction of the forest, the factory is also blamed for environmental pollution, from leaks of diesel fuel, paint and aluminum.
Meanwhile, Kayrros chief analyst Antoine Half estimated that Berlin’s cut trees accounted for 13,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide, the equivalent of the annual emissions of 2,800 internal combustion engine cars in the US.
#Musks #Tesla #destroying #forests
