Human society’s growing demand for energy, minerals and construction materials is reshaping the planet at an unsustainable pace, author James Crawford warns in his new book, “The Vanishing Earth: Dispatches from the Frontiers of Extraction.”
Crawford describes visiting extraction sites ranging from Florida phosphate mines to Chile’s lithium fields and Montana’s contaminated Berkeley Pit. He writes about how those places demonstrate how mining can produce jobs and essential materials while leaving communities with environmental costs that may endure indefinitely.
Crawford acknowledges that lithium is needed for electric vehicles and renewable-energy storage. But he argued that replacing gasoline-powered vehicles without reducing overall consumption could simply transfer environmental damage to mineral-producing regions.
Crawford, whose father spent decades designing North Sea oil infrastructure, rejects the demonization of oil-and-gas workers. He describes their engineering achievements as remarkable and said many workers enter extractive industries to support their families. His criticism focuses instead on whether corporations are required to pay the full costs of pollution, cleanup and climate change.
Crawford says the energy transition currently resembles “accumulation” because fossil-fuel consumption continues growing alongside renewable energy. International Energy Agency data show global oil, natural gas and coal consumption all reached record highs in 2024, even as renewable-energy deployment expanded.
Guest:
James Crawford is the author of “The Vanishing Earth: Dispatches from the Frontiers of Extraction.” He is a historian and BBC broadcaster. His previous books are “Fallen Glory” and “The Edge of the Plain.”
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This interview will be recorded live on Thursday August 13, 2026, at 12:00 p.m.
