In my clueless opinion these batteries should be used strategically in places where solar, wind, and hydro power are unavailable.
You are conflating two senses of "clean" that are radically different in meaning and importance.
-- Fossil fuels are !clean in that they may destroy all life on earth via catastrophic climate change.
-- Lithium mines are !clean in that they present waste disposal challenges and some people find them "ugly".
It's like saying "your non–blood diamond is still a blood diamond because the jeweler got a papercut while handling the documentation".
Still, some might say that carbon pollution and groundwater pollution are different problems. One may decide the trade off between one and the other is worthwhile.
Do you have information supporting the idea that electric cars aren't scalable? My understanding is that they definitely are scalable.
In some places utilities are offering discounted electricity prices if the car charging infrastructure is hooked up to their smart metering/control system. This allows the company to signal when cars should start/stop charging.
There's no reason they can't work with car makers to introduce two way signalling between the charging infrastructure and the grid - the car can tell the grid that it needs to use X kW by Y time, and the grid can communicate the current permitted load.
Potentially with some option for the customer to pay a premium to charge immediately at a higher rate.
As in, damn the kids left the car unplugged and I have to work. even thirty minutes at a super charger is not a good solution.
So it comes down to a compromise, a good range extender technology and batteries for the majority of driving. That until truly faster charging can be achieved with house hold wiring.
I don't see this as something to worry about - it's just a household habit problem. Pretty much every new device introduces some, and people quickly adapt to use the device properly.