A drop in groundwater could mean big trouble for a tiny snail as Nevada lithium project presses on

Opponents of a huge lithium mine under construction in Nevada want U.S. officials to investigate whether the project already has caused a drop in groundwater levels that could lead to extinction of a tiny snail. Environmentalists and Native American activists want the U.S. Interior Department to address what they say is new evidence bolstering concerns about Lithium Americas’ Thacker Pass mine. The alarm is being sounded after Native American tribes dropped a lawsuit seeking to block the mine they said infringes on sacred lands where dozens of their ancestors were massacred by U.S. troops in 1865. The Fish and Wildlife Service is conducting a review of the snail’s status. Lithium Americas says opponents' concerns have been addressed in court.