CLIMATE-SMART MINING FACILITY: Kirsten Hund, Daniele La Porta, Thao P. Fabregas, Tim Laing, John Drexhage
Key Points
A low-carbon future will be very mineral intensive because clean energy technologies need more materials than fossil-fuel-based electricity generation technologies. Greater ambition on climate change goals (1.50C–20C or below), as outlined by the Paris Agreement,
requires installing more of these technologies and will therefore lead to a larger material footprint.
Each mineral carries a different demand risk depending on whether it is cross-cutting (needed across a range of low-carbon technologies) or concentrated (needed in one specific technology). Absolute production numbers and relative increases in demand for each mineral may also play a role in their ability to meet supply as well as have climate and environmental implications.
Technology and subtechnology choice, material substitution, and technological improvements will shift the demand for individual minerals under different low-carbon scenarios. Still, any lower-carbon pathway will increase the overall demand of minerals.
While the recycling and reuse of minerals can play a key role in reducing emissions, mining will still be required to supply the critical minerals needed to produce these low-carbon technologies, even with large future increases in recycling rates.
Despite the higher mineral intensity of renewable energy technologies, the scale of associated greenhouse gas emissions is a fraction of that of fossil fuel technologies. However, the carbon and material footprints cannot be overlooked.
Limiting the carbon footprint of minerals needed for the clean energy transition may offer double wins, helping to boost economic growth and reduce environmental risks in resource-rich developing countries. It will also enable the transition to a 1.50C–20C pathway, in line with the Paris Agreement, Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 7, “access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all,” and SDG 13, taking “urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts.”
The Climate-Smart Mining Initiative addresses these challenges by working together with governments, development partners, industries, and civil society to minimize the new emissions from a low-carbon transition and work closely with resource-rich developing countries to responsibly supply these strategic minerals for clean energy technologies.
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