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Waterleaf/Lilac says North‑Arm pilot removes lithium and shows preliminary compliance; commercial plant planned for 2027
Summary
Waterleaf (Lilac technology) updated the council on a North Arm direct‑lithium‑extraction pilot: the company reported ~10 weeks of sampling showing lithium removal in discharge, early biota monitoring, pilot design and a 2027 target for commercial operations at about 5,000 tons/year and 150–170 acre‑feet/year freshwater need.
Waterleaf, a Lilac‑technology subsidiary, briefed the advisory council on its North Arm pilot for direct lithium extraction and outlined results, environmental monitoring and plans for commercial scale.
Steve Morin, senior project director for Waterleaf, said the pilot began after final permissions were granted by State Lands and the Division of Water Quality and that the company has run roughly 10 weeks of weekly sampling with third‑party and regulator oversight. "We are pulling lithium out," Morin said as he showed intake and outfall plots; pilot results show lower lithium in discharge samples than the intake stream, and the company reported average pilot influent lithium near 69 ppm.
Mark Mulligan, Waterleaf’s vice president for engineering and projects, walked the council through the ion‑exchange and refining flow sheet used in the pilot and explained pilot objectives: measure key performance indicators, demonstrate discharge quality to permitting agencies and validate process steps up to the eluate/softening stage; final crystallization and evaporation steps are performed at an off‑site facility in Oakland. The company said initial outfall metal spikes were traced to coatings in temporary storage tanks and not to process effluent.
Waterleaf said its pilot is located on a 50‑acre private lease (the demonstration footprint is roughly 1 acre). For commercial operation the company plans to secure local well water rights, estimating freshwater needs at about 150–170 acre‑feet per year and a commercial flow of roughly 10,500 gallons per minute to produce about 5,000 tons of lithium carbonate annually. The company said a third‑party estimate places roughly 1,400,000 tons of lithium in the North Arm resource base, indicating multi‑decade potential at the proposed production rate.
Environmental monitoring includes weekly chemical sampling (third‑party labs HDR and Chemtech) and a contracted biological monitoring study by Dr. Bonnie Baxter; sequencing results from a second sampling event were described as pending. Waterleaf said it is exploring commercial reuse or sale options for process solids and salts rather than default hauling to landfill.
