Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 16, 2026
06:10
Using Generative Art to Convey Past and Future Climate Transitions
Published on: March 31, 2023
1.3K
Global Metal Use Targets in Line with Climate Goals.
Takuma Watari1,2, Keisuke Nansai1,3, Damien Giurco4
1Center for Material Cycles and Waste Management Research, National Institute for Environmental Studies, 16-2 Onogawa, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8506, Japan.
Environmental Science & Technology
|September 11, 2020
Summary
Meeting global climate goals requires a significant reduction in metal use. Society needs to transition to using half the current metal stock per capita by 2100, peaking production by 2030.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Science
- Materials Science
- Climate Science
Background:
- Metal production is a significant driver of climate change.
- Essential metals like iron, aluminum, copper, zinc, lead, and nickel are critical for modern society.
- Current metal production and consumption patterns are unsustainable for climate targets.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop global targets for metal flows, stocks, and use intensity up to 2100.
- To align metal economy targets with a 2°C climate change mitigation pathway.
- To assess the feasibility of reducing societal metal requirements.
Main Methods:
- Integrated assessment modeling of global metal economies.
- Scenario analysis for six major metals (iron, aluminum, copper, zinc, lead, nickel).
- Development of science-based targets for metal stock and use intensity.
Main Results:
- A transformative system change is needed to reduce metal demand.
- Global metal stock needs to be approximately 7 t/capita by 2100, halving current high-income country levels.
- Global metal production must peak by 2030, with deep decoupling of economic growth from metal flows and stocks.
Conclusions:
- Achieving a 2°C climate goal necessitates a substantial decrease in societal metal requirements.
- Measures like efficient design, intensive use, and extended product lifetimes are crucial.
- Immediate action is vital, especially before low- and middle-income countries urbanize fully.
More Related Videos
10:31Detection and Recovery of Palladium, Gold and Cobalt Metals from the Urban Mine Using Novel Sensors/Adsorbents Designated with Nanoscale Wagon-wheel-shaped Pores
Published on: December 6, 2015
28.4K
10:20Quantification of Heavy Metals and Other Inorganic Contaminants on the Productivity of Microalgae
Published on: July 10, 2015
16.3K
Related Concept Videos
01:24Microbes and Other Elemental Cycles
Microbial activity plays a pivotal role in the biogeochemical cycling of iron and manganese, especially at the redox gradients characteristic of stratified aquatic environments. These cycles are driven by microbial transformations between oxidized and reduced forms of the metals, allowing organisms to exploit them for metabolic energy and structural purposes.Iron Cycling Across Redox GradientsIn neutral, oxygen-rich surface waters, iron is predominantly found in its oxidized, insoluble ferric...
01:27Microbes and Climate Change
Microorganisms are pivotal agents in Earth's biogeochemical cycles, significantly influencing climate dynamics through their metabolic activities. These microbes modulate the levels of key greenhouse gases by both contributing to and helping mitigate climate change.Microbial Contributions to Greenhouse Gas EmissionsRising global temperatures accelerate microbial metabolism, which, in turn, speeds up the decomposition of organic matter. This process releases carbon dioxide (CO₂) through...
01:50Global Climate Change
Throughout its ~4.5 billion year history, the Earth has experienced periods of warming and cooling. However, the current drastic increase in global temperatures is well outside of the Earth’s cyclic norms, and evidence for human-caused global climate change is compelling. Paleoclimatology, the study of ancient climate conditions, provides ample evidence for human-caused global climate change by comparing recent conditions with those in the past.
02:51Metal-Ligand Bonds
The hemoglobin in the blood, the chlorophyll in green plants, vitamin B-12, and the catalyst used in the manufacture of polyethylene all contain coordination compounds. Ions of the metals, especially the transition metals, are likely to form complexes.
In these complexes, transition metals form coordinate covalent bonds, a kind of Lewis acid-base interaction in which both of the electrons in the bond are contributed by a donor (Lewis base) to an electron acceptor (Lewis acid). The Lewis acid in...
In these complexes, transition metals form coordinate covalent bonds, a kind of Lewis acid-base interaction in which both of the electrons in the bond are contributed by a donor (Lewis base) to an electron acceptor (Lewis acid). The Lewis acid in...
01:14The Carbon Cycle
Carbon is the basis of all organic matter on Earth, and is recycled through the ecosystem in two primary processes: one in which carbon is exchanged among living organisms, and one in which carbon is cycled over long periods of time through fossilized organic remains, weathering of rocks, and volcanic activity. Human activities, including increased agricultural practices and the burning of fossil fuels, has greatly affected the balance of the natural carbon cycle.
01:43Sustainable Development
As the human population continues to grow and use resources, we must be mindful of our planet’s natural limits. Sustainable development provides a pathway to maintain and improve human life now while also ensuring that future generations will have the resources that they need. The long-term success of sustainability efforts rests on understanding the interplay between human actions and ecological systems.