Electric vehicle manufacturers may be subject to an EU-funded certification scheme using blockchain technology to certify that rare earths used in the production of EV magnets are not linked to toxic pollution.

The Circular System for Assessing Rare Earth Sustainability (CSyARES) system will set new global standards and allow consumers to confidently purchase EVs which have been produced using sustainable methods. The Rare Earth Industry Association (REIA) and Dutch supply chain traceability firm Circularise expects that the system will be ready for use in 2025. The European Union is currently funding the project through EIT Raw Materials, an organisation created to secure critical minerals for the EU.

CSyARES will use blockchain tokens as digital passports tracking the rare earths from mining to end-of-life. Once a token is created for a certain amount of sustainability produced mineral, it is immutable and permanently stored on the blockchain. Teresa Oberhauser of Circularise notes that the currently used certificates for verifying sustainably mined products are not trustworthy, with some certificates being sold on eBay.

The processing of rare earth ore is complex with toxic by-products which need to be disposed of carefully. The product of rare earths is set to rise globally as the US and EU aim to reduce its dependence on Chinese exports, which currently supplies around 90% of the world’s rare earths.

Source: https://www.mining.com/web/blockchain-rare-earth-scheme-to-certify-sustainable-output-for-evs/