Achieving the goals and objectives of sustainable development requires better information about the consequences of proposed actions. Partial information accounts for many failed efforts in the past. The financial implications for the proponent of the projects have often been more thoroughly analyzed than the implications for other actors. The impacts on biological diversity, or on the social fabric of local communities, have often been ignored. Decisi- makers may also focus more on the short-term consequences instead of long- term impacts, creating negative unintended consequences. It is clear that better decision-making processes are needed. Making better decisions requires identifying, obtaining, synthesizing and acting on larger and more diverse data sets, including information that has previously been overlooked in development decisions. The good news is that better processes are being developed and are becoming available. If the goal is to reach decisions that are broadly understood and accepted, affected communities need to be consulted. Early public participation in defining problems is a prerequisite to effective decision-making. There is no universal formula or checklist of information applicable to every proposed project. The scope of information required should not be determined from the start by small cadres of experts. It is unlikely that any individual or small group processes all of the expertise to achieve the kind of profound int- disciplinary synthesis that is needed.

Autorentext

Professor Ayres holds a PhD in Mathematical Physics from Kings College, University of London, a MSc in Physics from the University of Maryland and a BA, BSc from the University of Chicago. He is currently Emeritus Professor of Economics and Political Science and of Technology and Operations Management at INSEAD, the international graduate business school. He joined INSEAD in 1992, becoming the first Sandoz (now Novartis) Chair of Management and the Environment, as well as the founder of CMER, Center for the Management of Environmental Resources. He directed CMER from 1992-2000. Since retirement he has been a visiting professor at Chalmers Institute of Technology in Sweden (where he was also a King's Professor) and Institute Scholar at the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA) in Austria. He remains active, producing publications on topics ranging from Industrial Metabolism and Industrial Ecology, through Environmental Policy and Environmental Economics, to Energy. Professor Ayres is the author or coauthor of 22 books, most recently including The Economic Growth Engine (2009, with Benjamin Warr), Crossing the Energy Divide (2009, with Edward Ayres), Bubble Economy (2014), Energy, Complexity and Wealth Maximization (2018), On Capitalism and Inequality (2020), and The History and Future of Technology (2021).

Inhalt

1. Introduction.- 2. Copper: Sources and Supply.- 3. Copper: Demand and Disposition.- 4: Lead, Zinc and Other Byproduct Metals.- 5. The Future of Recycling.- 6. Conclusions and Questions.- References.- Appendix A: The Exergy Concept.- A1. Definition and description of exergy calculations.- A2. Exergy as a tool for resource and waste accounting.- A3. Composition of mixtures, including fuels.- Appendix B: The Behavior of Copper, Lead and Zinc in Soil.- B1. Metals in soils.- B2. Aqueous phase speciation.- B3. Solid phase constituents and complex formation.- B4. Summary.- Appendix C: Global Copper Model.- C1. Introduction.- C2. A model of the global copper system.- C3. Calibration of the model.- C4. Copper consumption scenarios.- C5. Copper system scenarios.- Appendix D: Glossary.