How to electrify without causing further harm: reusing minerals

These in-their-own-words pieces are told to Patricia Lane and co-edited with input from the interviewee for the purpose of brevity.

Natasha Kumari cleans up after mining companies. This 31-year-old from Burnaby, British Columbia, is vice president of marketing and operations for Tersa Earth, which uses nature-based solutions to clean the water in mining tailings ponds and reuse the minerals.  

Tell us about your project.

The world has a critical need for copper and lithium, but there is a shortage, and mining waste in toxic acidified tailings ponds is a serious problem. We clean and neutralize the water so it is safe to return to the ecosystem. We also extract up to 95 per cent of the residual copper and much of the residual lithium. These minerals can be recirculated for use in electric vehicles, cell phone batteries and other electrification applications, thus reducing the demand for new supplies. 

We use a fuel cell powered by commonly found microbes which have been bio-engineered to mimic the way eels produce an electric current. This neutralizes acidity and retrieves the minerals from the water. Our work has garnered international attention for its potential to revolutionize the mining industry. In 2024, we were included in the  2024 Cleantech 50 to Watch and the Foresight 50 list,  and won the World Economic Forum’s Sustainable Mining Challenge. 

We have tested this in the lab and have proof of concept with a major mining consortium. We are now entering field trials. 

How did you get involved?

I have always wanted my work to align with my values, and being careful about my impact is important to me. One of my friends recommended me to the CEO of Tersa Earth, who is his mother. We worked together on a couple of other startups and built a trusting relationship, so she brought me in at the beginning. 

What makes it challenging?

Start-ups are always challenging, but in our case, we are doing something completely new. We are women-led, and our staff are very diverse. Research shows that it is harder for women to raise money. However, these differences are also important assets, as we can see things from new perspectives and ask different questions. 

What gives you hope?

Our technology is potentially transformative. The world must electrify, and we must do it without further harming the Earth. We can help. 

We have been quiet about our project until recently, when we tested it and proved its capacities. Seeing the recognition we are receiving now is very gratifying, and each new award gives us more hope.

How did the way you were raised affect you?

My mom immigrated from Fiji and raised my sister and I as a single parent. She did not have it easy, but her resilience shone through. My sister is unusually kind. As a child, I would want toys or candy but she would model how to share and feel good about it. In university, I joined a group for women in business and found wonderful role models of women determined to use their business acumen to make the world a better place. 

What do you see if we get this right?

There is $3.4 trillion worth of metals sitting in waste that can be repurposed to meet human need. Humanity understands that just as waste is a foreign concept in nature, we have found value in what we previously discarded. Our economies are circular rather than extractive. We profit in the long term only if we also sustain the earth. 

What would you like to say to other young people?

This is work we must do together. No one company or individual will create the safe, healthy futures we deserve. Find your people or make yourself seen so they can find you.

If you have an idea and you can learn to adapt and pivot, you will get there, but it may look different than you originally imagined.

What about older readers?

Our world today is the product of our imaginations. Encourage the young people around you to dream and support their journeys.