Environmental Footprint of Mineral Resources

The effects of the quantities of waste and emissions on the environment are captured in the form of “environmental footprints”. For metals in particular, disparities in the locations of extraction, processing, and use also lead to disparities in the geography of the footprints. This chapter shows how multi-regional input–output models provide information on these disparities. The ecological footprint pays very little attention to mineral resources and does not take into account the full range of environmental impacts. Among environmental assessment methods, lifecycle assessment has become widespread, with the aim of covering “as many” environmental impacts as possible. The objective of the product environmental footprint method is to objectively define the environmental footprint of products and to provide a rigorous measurement method common to all EU member countries. Starting in the 2000s, multi-regional input–output models began to emerge to model the economic, social, and environmental impacts of global trade.