Peak Minerals Flashcards
How much stuff do we use and why is it bad?
We use lots of minerals and some in mobile phones. Some of the materials we use everyday are very sparse and cannot be sustained.
Was Hubert’s prediction right?
Fracking meant that oil usage increased rapidly…so yes.
What is the conceptual model?
Reserves are dependent on grade price fluctuations and can cause reserves and resources to oscillate.
If a material has a high price it’s worth it to mine it even if we have a shortage.
How are peak minerals different?
Oil is used once and cannot be recycled when used for energy
Minerals and their metallic products can be recycled and re used
What mineral is best for recycling?
Gold
Where is gold mainly produced?
China
When was peak production of gold expected?
2015
What are the problems with phosphates?
Waste is produced which can cause eutrophication
Where did phosphate mining originate? Why?
South Carolina 1967 for fertilisers
Are phosphates decreasing?
No but the peak could be reached soon which is bad because fertilisers are irreplaceable.
Give statistics on how much copper was obtained in China.
1780 million tonnes of Cu was obtained within 730 projects
What’s happening to the amount of copper?
It’s increasing as geologists are finding more, we haven’t reached peak yet and production has grown a lot.
What three things is copper used in?
Tech
Infrastructure
Lifestyles
How can we go foreword? (3)
Educate people as a lot don’t know how finite these materials are
Stop obsessing over growth as it’s causing numbers to decrease
Stop the population increasing so rapidly
