USGS Finds 328 Years of Lithium Imports Buried in Appalachia

America's worrisome dependency on foreign sources of lithium could become a thing of the past: About 328 years' worth of last year's lithium imports is buried in Appalachia, according to a new analysis published by the US Geological Survey (USGS). That's about 2.3 million metric tons of undiscovered but economically recoverable lithium -- aka "white gold." "This research shows that the Appalachians contain enough lithium to help meet the nation's growing needs – a major contribution to U.S. mineral security, at a time when global lithium…