North Korea might be making millions — and breaking sanctions — selling sand. Yes, sand.
North Korea is barred from exporting earth and stone under United Nations sanctions passed in December 2017. Trading North Korean sand is a violation of international law. Despite those measures, North Korea raked in at least $22 million last year using “a substantial sand-export operation,” UN investigators said in a report released in April.
Satellites Show Scale Of Suspected Illegal Dredging In South China Sea
An unrelenting fleet of China-based dredging vessels are churning up the South China Sea. They are accused of acting illegally, and of causing ecological damage. Satellite images show the incredible scale of the activity.
Stripe picks $1 million in carbon-removal projects to spur industry
The billionaire brothers who control San Francisco-based online payments company Stripe are spending a quarter of a million dollars to import special sand to a remote Caribbean beach.
6 things you need to know about sand mining
Sand is the single most mined commodity, eclipsing minerals and metals by a colossal margin. Around 85% of the material we pull up from the earth is sand, gravel or other aggregate materials. Globally our annual aggregate consumption is somewhere around 53 billion tonnes – the equivalent to every person on earth using 20kg of sand every single day.
470,000 US dollars worth of illegally mined sand seized in 2019, Algeria
Beyond the direct threat to the littoral, illegal sand mining in Jijel has become a matter of sand mafias, and the numbers of cases handled increased compared to 2018.
As sea levels rise, will drinking water supplies be at risk?
The Delaware River, a major source of drinking water for Philadelphia, is facing an emerging threat as rising seas push saltwater farther upstream. It’s a problem that other places, from Miami to Shanghai, will also confront, especially as increasing drought lowers river flows.
Creating a sustainable sand industry requires greater regulation – here’s why
Until its trade is more closely monitored and regulated, sand will continue to be exploited, threatening the very building blocks of modern society. But surveillance alone may not be enough: the industry urgently needs more alternatives to sand.
Growing youth activism for environmental protection in Africa
The mining sector in Africa is facing radical change as youth activists take action against the environmental degradation caused by mining industries.
Go-ahead for mining on ten West Coast beaches, South Africa
South Africa’s Environment Minister Barbara Creecy has dismissed most of the appeals against the approval in 2019 of vastly expanded beach mining operations on the West Coast north of the Olifants River.