Metal mining’s carbon footprint far larger than thought: study
WASHINGTON – From building wind turbines to reinforcing power grids for rising demand from electric cars, transitioning from fossil fuels to greener economies will require a massive increase in metal extraction. But new research published in Environmental Science and Technology yesterday shows the carbon footprint linked to metal mining could be 10 times greater than... The post Metal mining’s carbon footprint far larger than thought: study appeared first on New Era .
WASHINGTON – From building wind turbines to reinforcing power grids for rising demand from electric cars, transitioning from fossil fuels to greener economies will require a massive increase in metal extraction.
But new research published in Environmental Science and Technology yesterday shows the carbon footprint linked to metal mining could be 10 times greater than previously thought, with major implications for the world’s climate goals.
“We found an emission source that’s not well considered in the mining industry for CO2, that is potentially very large in at least certain settings – much larger than the well-accounted-for emission sources,” senior author Luke Bridgestock of the University of St Andrews told AFP.
“We need to decarbonize the mining industry, and the only way to do that is if we know where the emissions are coming from and have tailored strategies of dealing with each of those emission sources,” he added.
Metal mining is energy-intensive, and conventional estimates for its carbon footprint attribute most of its emissions to heavy equipment on-site, as well as diesel transport required to haul ore away.
