The person buying a Tesla is likely not disposing of it now, but some years away.
Betting there will be recycling that doesn’t exist now isn’t ideal, but it seems likely. If the material is scare and valuable, it isn’t going to be wasted.
This really isn’t an “ICE is better, end discussion” type situation.
> If the material is scare and valuable, it isn’t going to be wasted.
But if the material is mixed with other materials, making recycling difficult and expensive to do, maybe it won't.
After all, Li-ion battery recycling is pretty bad right now, and there's plenty of Li-ion batteries being disposed of today.
5% of disposed Li-ion batteries are recycled right now. Sure, that number will improve in the future, but by how much? Even 200% to 300% improvement would be terrible in absolute terms. And its not like there's a singular kind of Li-ion battery, each Li-ion cell has its own chemistry, some are Cobalt based, others are Nickle based, others are Iron based.
Has there ever been a recycling process that worked when chemicals were so mixed up together? Are there any companies even trying to solve the problem? Or are you trusting blind faith that the problem will be solved without any actual evidence?
How would you apply that logic to ICE enthusiasts? Must they fix the Middle East and extract CO2 from the atmosphere?