Salar de Atacama

Salar de Atacama is a large salt flat in Chile’s Antofagasta Region, occupying a closed basin in the Andes’ rain shadow. Its brines are a major source of lithium.

Endorheic basin: A drainage basin that retains water without an outlet to the sea. Water and dissolved minerals entering the Atacama basin remain trapped, allowing salts to accumulate.
Lithium extraction: The recovery of lithium from mineral deposits or lithium-bearing brines. Companies pump and process subsurface brines to obtain lithium from the salar.
Los Flamencos National Reserve: A protected area in Chile’s Antofagasta Region containing Andean wetlands, lagoons, and desert landscapes. The reserve protects sites around the salar, including important flamingo habitats.
Indigenous peoples of Chile: The Indigenous peoples with ancestral territories and communities within present-day Chile. Atacameño communities have longstanding relationships with lands and waters around the salar.
Lithium brine: Groundwater containing dissolved lithium salts at concentrations suitable for extraction. Lithium-rich groundwater beneath the salar supplies much of its commercially produced lithium.
SQM: A Chilean chemical and mining company formerly known as Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile. SQM operates a major lithium-producing operation at Salar de Atacama.
Chaxa Lagoon: A saline lagoon within Los Flamencos National Reserve in the Atacama Desert. Its shallow waters and microbial mats support flamingos in the salar’s southern sector.
Atacameño people: An Indigenous people of the Andes whose ancestral territory includes the Atacama Desert and surrounding highlands. Atacameño communities participate in debates over extraction, water, and territorial rights.
Halite: The mineral form of sodium chloride, commonly known as rock salt. Evaporation leaves thick halite crusts across large parts of the salar.
Albemarle Corporation: A global specialty chemicals company and major producer of lithium compounds. Albemarle extracts lithium from brines at the salar under Chilean concessions.

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