Concrete infrastructure is an inseparable component of modern civilization. It is the essential material in civic infrastructure and without it, the housing, transport infrastructure, hospitals, industrial and commercial buildings enjoyed by a modern society could not exist. 

So far as the growth and survival of human societies are concerned, concrete is an essential component. As a foundation and building block of long lasting, low cost and reliable infrastructure, concrete delivers unparalleled performance for the ever increasing urbanisation and industrialisation of society.

Sand is the most exploited natural resource in the world after water, but global trading remains largely unregulated. According to the U.N. Environment Programme (UNEP) sands cannot be replenished from our terrestrial, riverine and marine environments in the quantities and timescales needed to meet demand from a world of 10 billion people.  

Global sand consumption for use in concrete and manufacturing has tripled over two decades to 50 billion tonnes a year, harming rivers and coastlines and even wiping out small islands.  Such is the crisis, organisations like Levin Sources are showing leadership with insightful publications that give guidance on the  responsible sourcing of sand.

The scarcity of sand supply has also resulted in an array of bad actors, all vying for their sand stake.  A recent article entitled Granules & Geopolitics: Conflicts over Sand    paints a very worrisome picture of the global geopolitics surrounding sand.  

The UNEP estimates that construction consumes roughly 40 to 50 billion tons of sand annually, but the shortage of natural sand deposits consistent in both quality and quantity, is forcing the construction industry to secure larger remote deposits. 

The global construction value chain needs to address this resource anxiety with effective policy, planning, regulation and management.  To address this, the UNEP have set in action a roadmap to global sand regulation.