Responsibility of consumers for mining capacity: decomposition analysis of scarcity-weighted metal footprints in the case of Japan

Summary: Metal-consuming countries depend on mining activity in other countries, which may impose potential pressure on sustainable metal supply. This study proposes an approach to analyze the responsibility of consuming countries for mining activities based on the decomposition analysis of scarcity...

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Main Authors: Ryosuke Yokoi, Keisuke Nansai, Kenichi Nakajima, Takuma Watari, Masaharu Motoshita
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2021-01-01
Series:iScience
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2589004220312220
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author Ryosuke Yokoi
Keisuke Nansai
Kenichi Nakajima
Takuma Watari
Masaharu Motoshita
author_facet Ryosuke Yokoi
Keisuke Nansai
Kenichi Nakajima
Takuma Watari
Masaharu Motoshita
author_sort Ryosuke Yokoi
collection DOAJ
description Summary: Metal-consuming countries depend on mining activity in other countries, which may impose potential pressure on sustainable metal supply. This study proposes an approach to analyze the responsibility of consuming countries for mining activities based on the decomposition analysis of scarcity-weighted metal footprints (S-MFs) of Japan. The application results to the Japanese final demand (iron, copper, and nickel) demonstrate the significance of country- and metal-specific conditions in terms of metal footprints and mining capacity in assessing the responsibility of consuming countries. Consuming countries can identify influential factors to reduce their S-MFs based on the decomposition analysis by discriminating the directly controllable and uncontrollable factors for consuming countries, which can help to plan different countermeasures depending on the types of the identified influential factors. The proposed approach supports metal-consuming countries to determine the effective options for reducing the responsibility for the sustainability of metal supply.
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spelling doaj.art-6baba8dcb79b42968c0df193b77711a02022-12-21T23:24:09ZengElsevieriScience2589-00422021-01-01241102025Responsibility of consumers for mining capacity: decomposition analysis of scarcity-weighted metal footprints in the case of JapanRyosuke Yokoi0Keisuke Nansai1Kenichi Nakajima2Takuma Watari3Masaharu Motoshita4Research Institute of Science for Safety and Sustainability, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), 16-1 Onogawa, Tsukuba 305-8569, Japan; Corresponding authorCenter for Material Cycles and Waste Management Research, National Institute for Environmental Studies, 16-2 Onogawa, Tsukuba 305-8506, Japan; ISA, School of Physics, Faculty of Science, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, AustraliaCenter for Material Cycles and Waste Management Research, National Institute for Environmental Studies, 16-2 Onogawa, Tsukuba 305-8506, Japan; Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, The University of Tokyo, 5-1-5 Kashiwanoha, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-8563, JapanCenter for Material Cycles and Waste Management Research, National Institute for Environmental Studies, 16-2 Onogawa, Tsukuba 305-8506, Japan; Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, The University of Tokyo, 5-1-5 Kashiwanoha, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-8563, JapanResearch Institute of Science for Safety and Sustainability, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), 16-1 Onogawa, Tsukuba 305-8569, JapanSummary: Metal-consuming countries depend on mining activity in other countries, which may impose potential pressure on sustainable metal supply. This study proposes an approach to analyze the responsibility of consuming countries for mining activities based on the decomposition analysis of scarcity-weighted metal footprints (S-MFs) of Japan. The application results to the Japanese final demand (iron, copper, and nickel) demonstrate the significance of country- and metal-specific conditions in terms of metal footprints and mining capacity in assessing the responsibility of consuming countries. Consuming countries can identify influential factors to reduce their S-MFs based on the decomposition analysis by discriminating the directly controllable and uncontrollable factors for consuming countries, which can help to plan different countermeasures depending on the types of the identified influential factors. The proposed approach supports metal-consuming countries to determine the effective options for reducing the responsibility for the sustainability of metal supply.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2589004220312220Earth SciencesMining GeologyEnvironmental PolicyMaterials ScienceMetals
spellingShingle Ryosuke Yokoi
Keisuke Nansai
Kenichi Nakajima
Takuma Watari
Masaharu Motoshita
Responsibility of consumers for mining capacity: decomposition analysis of scarcity-weighted metal footprints in the case of Japan
iScience
Earth Sciences
Mining Geology
Environmental Policy
Materials Science
Metals
title Responsibility of consumers for mining capacity: decomposition analysis of scarcity-weighted metal footprints in the case of Japan
title_full Responsibility of consumers for mining capacity: decomposition analysis of scarcity-weighted metal footprints in the case of Japan
title_fullStr Responsibility of consumers for mining capacity: decomposition analysis of scarcity-weighted metal footprints in the case of Japan
title_full_unstemmed Responsibility of consumers for mining capacity: decomposition analysis of scarcity-weighted metal footprints in the case of Japan
title_short Responsibility of consumers for mining capacity: decomposition analysis of scarcity-weighted metal footprints in the case of Japan
title_sort responsibility of consumers for mining capacity decomposition analysis of scarcity weighted metal footprints in the case of japan
topic Earth Sciences
Mining Geology
Environmental Policy
Materials Science
Metals
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2589004220312220
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