Knowledge (XXG)

Environmental Risks and Challenges of Anthropogenic Metals Flows and Cycles

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99:, the International Resource Panel decides to address the environmental and energy issues related to the use and the production of metals. In this report, an assessment is made of literature on metal flows and cycles in nature and in society, the way they are connected, and the potential impacted related to them. The four areas of focus are 1) Local impacts of mining, 2) life cycle energy use, 3) non-metal sources, and 4) the need for a final sink. Furthermore, the author point out that a sustainable metals management cannot be defined in isolation, because a global issue like this is linked to many other issues at the global level: population and welfare increase, the concurrent expected rise in demand for food, water, and energy, the availability of metals and other non-renewable materials, the shift to a renewable energy system, dietary choices, etc. Therefore, it should be part of an overall effort to steer society towards a more sustainable development. 103:
continue in the coming decades. Secondly, a shift towards a renewable energy system implies that the material, especially metal, intensity of energy production will increase substantially. Thirdly, in the future, the energy intensity of production of metals is expected to increase due to the use of lesser grade of ores.
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Metals and their compounds have been used for millennia because of their unique properties. They are used in highly valued products of modern technology, furthermore, they plan an essential role in renewable energy technologies. After having analyzed issues of metal stocks in society and recycling
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The production of different metals has different potentials to impact the environment. The report gives reasons to why metals can become relatively more important from an environmental impact point of view. First of all, the demand for most metals is rising rapidly and this trend is expected to
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the lifecycle-long environmental impacts of products and services created and consumed around the globe
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rates and recycling conditions and opportunities in the previous two reports on metals,
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Environmental Risks and Challenges of Anthropogenic Metals Flows and Cycles
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Environmental Risks and Challenges of Anthropogenic Metals Flows and Cycles
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options to meet human and economic needs with fewer or cleaner resources.
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reserves and how efficiently these resources are being used
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was the third of six scientific assessments on global
39: 31: 23: 8: 16: 15: 136: 134: 112: 35:May 2013, International Resource Panel 7: 178:United Nations Environment Programme 65:United Nations Environment Programme 14: 27:Independent scientific assessment 97:Recycling Rates of Metals report 93:Metal Stocks in Society report 1: 151:International Resource Panel 123:International Resource Panel 61:International Resource Panel 194: 71:the volume of selected 59:to be published by the 173:Environmental reports 44:www.resourcepanel.org 20: 145:2016-03-04 at the 49: 48: 185: 157: 138: 129: 117: 86:About the report 21: 193: 192: 188: 187: 186: 184: 183: 182: 163: 162: 161: 160: 147:Wayback Machine 139: 132: 118: 114: 109: 88: 12: 11: 5: 191: 189: 181: 180: 175: 165: 164: 159: 158: 130: 111: 110: 108: 105: 87: 84: 83: 82: 79: 76: 47: 46: 41: 37: 36: 33: 29: 28: 25: 13: 10: 9: 6: 4: 3: 2: 190: 179: 176: 174: 171: 170: 168: 156: 152: 148: 144: 141: 137: 135: 131: 128: 124: 120: 116: 113: 106: 104: 100: 98: 94: 85: 80: 77: 74: 70: 69: 68: 66: 63:(IRP) of the 62: 58: 54: 45: 42: 38: 34: 30: 26: 22: 19: 115: 101: 89: 73:raw material 52: 50: 51:The report 32:Publication 167:Categories 107:References 149:, 2013, 143:Archived 121:, 2010, 40:Website 57:metals 155:UNEP 127:UNEP 95:and 24:Type 169:: 153:, 133:^ 125:,

Index

Environmental Risks and Challenges of Anthropogenic Metals Flows and Cycles
www.resourcepanel.org
metals
International Resource Panel
United Nations Environment Programme
raw material
Metal Stocks in Society report
Recycling Rates of Metals report

International Resource Panel
UNEP



Archived
Wayback Machine
International Resource Panel
UNEP
Categories
Environmental reports
United Nations Environment Programme

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