Mineral Resources and Sustainable Development
A special issue of Resources (ISSN 2079-9276).
Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (1 October 2020) | Viewed by 17502
Special Issue Editors
Interests: mineral resources and energy; dynamic modeling; thermodynamic scenarios
Interests: ore-forming process; ore exploration; behavior of metals in deep and shallow geological fluids; education in mineral resources
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleague,
The world economy depends on the availability of huge amounts of mineral resources and energy. The future growth of the world population, the rapid economic development of populated countries, and the transition to digital and low-carbon technologies are expected to further increase their global consumption in the coming decades. Many questions arise regarding the future availability of mineral resources to producing and non-producing countries as well as the conditions for their primary extraction, downstream manufacturing, and recycling. Recent evaluations of short-term supply risks suggest that over the next 2–3 decades, an unprepared minerals industry will struggle to meet the demand for several metals for which substitutes are not readily available.
In addition to short-term economic considerations, the long-term sustainable use of mineral resources should minimize the negative impact of their production and preserve their availability for future generations. It is essential that mining activity is reconciled with environmental protection to allay the concerns of local populations. The concept of sustainability encompasses technical, social, environmental, economic, geopolitical, and energy dimensions. It must take into account the specificity of each resource and be embedded in global and local development scenarios. Sustainability also implies improved coordination between mineral exploration, business planning, and the ability to obtain the community’s social license to operate.
This Special Issue of Resources highlights the movement towards an active environmental and societal strategy for sustainably harnessing mineral resources with an emphasis on the following topics:
- Mineral resources and sustainable development,
- The metal–energy nexus, mining, and social challenges,
- Criticality assessment of resources, supply, and future needs,
- Education and training of the next generation of mineral resource managers,
- Exploration and characterization of critical metal ore deposits.
Dr. Olivier Vidal
Prof. Dr. Laurent Truche
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
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Keywords
- mineral resources
- sustainable development
- supply and future needs
- recycling and substitution
- mining social and environmental challenges
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