Unveiling patterns in human dominated landscapes through mapping the mass of US built structures
Abstract Built structures increasingly dominate the Earth’s landscapes; their surging mass is currently overtaking global biomass. We here assess built structures in the conterminous US by quantifying the mass of 14 stock-building materials in eight building types and nine types of mobility infrastr...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Nature Portfolio
2023-12-01
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| Series: | Nature Communications |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-43755-5 |
| _version_ | 1797397896128102400 |
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| author | David Frantz Franz Schug Dominik Wiedenhofer André Baumgart Doris Virág Sam Cooper Camila Gómez-Medina Fabian Lehmann Thomas Udelhoven Sebastian van der Linden Patrick Hostert Helmut Haberl |
| author_facet | David Frantz Franz Schug Dominik Wiedenhofer André Baumgart Doris Virág Sam Cooper Camila Gómez-Medina Fabian Lehmann Thomas Udelhoven Sebastian van der Linden Patrick Hostert Helmut Haberl |
| author_sort | David Frantz |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Built structures increasingly dominate the Earth’s landscapes; their surging mass is currently overtaking global biomass. We here assess built structures in the conterminous US by quantifying the mass of 14 stock-building materials in eight building types and nine types of mobility infrastructures. Our high-resolution maps reveal that built structures have become 2.6 times heavier than all plant biomass across the country and that most inhabited areas are mass-dominated by buildings or infrastructure. We analyze determinants of the material intensity and show that densely built settlements have substantially lower per-capita material stocks, while highest intensities are found in sparsely populated regions due to ubiquitous infrastructures. Out-migration aggravates already high intensities in rural areas as people leave while built structures remain – highlighting that quantifying the distribution of built-up mass at high resolution is an essential contribution to understanding the biophysical basis of societies, and to inform strategies to design more resource-efficient settlements and a sustainable circular economy. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T01:16:48Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-b1383bb967e44b7c9b7ef5c8a96a0c76 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2041-1723 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T01:16:48Z |
| publishDate | 2023-12-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Nature Communications |
| spelling | doaj.art-b1383bb967e44b7c9b7ef5c8a96a0c762023-12-10T12:24:50ZengNature PortfolioNature Communications2041-17232023-12-0114111210.1038/s41467-023-43755-5Unveiling patterns in human dominated landscapes through mapping the mass of US built structuresDavid Frantz0Franz Schug1Dominik Wiedenhofer2André Baumgart3Doris Virág4Sam Cooper5Camila Gómez-Medina6Fabian Lehmann7Thomas Udelhoven8Sebastian van der Linden9Patrick Hostert10Helmut Haberl11Geoinformatics – Spatial Data Science, Trier UniversityGeography Department, Humboldt-Universität zu BerlinInstitute of Social Ecology, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, ViennaInstitute of Social Ecology, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, ViennaInstitute of Social Ecology, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, ViennaGeography Department, Humboldt-Universität zu BerlinGeography Department, Humboldt-Universität zu BerlinInstitute for Computer Science, Humboldt-Universität zu BerlinEnvironmental Remote Sensing and Geoinformatics, Trier UniversityInstitute of Geography and Geology, University of GreifswaldGeography Department, Humboldt-Universität zu BerlinInstitute of Social Ecology, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, ViennaAbstract Built structures increasingly dominate the Earth’s landscapes; their surging mass is currently overtaking global biomass. We here assess built structures in the conterminous US by quantifying the mass of 14 stock-building materials in eight building types and nine types of mobility infrastructures. Our high-resolution maps reveal that built structures have become 2.6 times heavier than all plant biomass across the country and that most inhabited areas are mass-dominated by buildings or infrastructure. We analyze determinants of the material intensity and show that densely built settlements have substantially lower per-capita material stocks, while highest intensities are found in sparsely populated regions due to ubiquitous infrastructures. Out-migration aggravates already high intensities in rural areas as people leave while built structures remain – highlighting that quantifying the distribution of built-up mass at high resolution is an essential contribution to understanding the biophysical basis of societies, and to inform strategies to design more resource-efficient settlements and a sustainable circular economy.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-43755-5 |
| spellingShingle | David Frantz Franz Schug Dominik Wiedenhofer André Baumgart Doris Virág Sam Cooper Camila Gómez-Medina Fabian Lehmann Thomas Udelhoven Sebastian van der Linden Patrick Hostert Helmut Haberl Unveiling patterns in human dominated landscapes through mapping the mass of US built structures Nature Communications |
| title | Unveiling patterns in human dominated landscapes through mapping the mass of US built structures |
| title_full | Unveiling patterns in human dominated landscapes through mapping the mass of US built structures |
| title_fullStr | Unveiling patterns in human dominated landscapes through mapping the mass of US built structures |
| title_full_unstemmed | Unveiling patterns in human dominated landscapes through mapping the mass of US built structures |
| title_short | Unveiling patterns in human dominated landscapes through mapping the mass of US built structures |
| title_sort | unveiling patterns in human dominated landscapes through mapping the mass of us built structures |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-43755-5 |
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