Wiedenhofer, D. orcid.org/0000-0001-7418-3477, Schug, F., Gauch, H. et al. (9 more authors) (2024) Mapping material stocks of buildings and mobility infrastructure in the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland. Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 206. 107630. ISSN 0921-3449
Abstract
Understanding the size and spatial distribution of material stocks is crucial for sustainable resource management and climate change mitigation. This study presents high-resolution maps of buildings and mobility infrastructure stocks for the United Kingdom (UK) and the Republic of Ireland (IRL) at 10 m, combining satellite-based Earth observations, OpenStreetMaps, and material intensities research. Stocks in the UK and IRL amount to 19.8 Gigatons or 279 tons/cap, predominantly aggregate, concrete and bricks, as well as various metals and timber. Building stocks per capita are surprisingly similar across medium to high population density, with only the lowest population densities having substantially larger per capita stocks. Infrastructure stocks per capita decrease with higher population density. Interestingly, for a given building stock within an area, infrastructure stocks are substantially larger in IRL than in the UK. These maps can provide useful insights for sustainable urban planning and advancing a circular economy.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2024 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). |
Keywords: | Earth observation; Sentinel-1; Sentinel-2; Infrastructure mapping; Social metabolism; Material stocks; Sustainable resource use; Sustainability |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Engineering (Sheffield) > Department of Civil and Structural Engineering (Sheffield) |
Funding Information: | Funder Grant number ENGINEERING AND PHYSICAL SCIENCE RESEARCH COUNCIL EP/S029273/1 |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 03 May 2024 08:14 |
Last Modified: | 03 May 2024 08:14 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Elsevier BV |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1016/j.resconrec.2024.107630 |
Sustainable Development Goals: | |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:212239 |