A collaborative research team, consisting of Zachary Sickmann from the University of Texas at Dallas, Nicholas Lammers from the Biophysics Graduate Group at the University of California, Berkeley, and Aurora Torres from the University of Alicante in Spain, has made significant progress in enhancing traceability within the sand sourcing industry.
The team’s investigation focused on sands from Texas, a region deemed geologically uncomplicated. Their findings suggest that the effectiveness of fingerprinting in traceability schemes could be further heightened when applied to sands from more geologically diverse areas, such as Bangladesh, Myanmar, Laos, and Malaysia. These countries, characterized by both geological complexity and escalating construction aggregate consumption, are known for sand mining conflicts and opaque sourcing issues.
Furthermore, the researchers observed that variations in sands from closely located mines within the same river valley were maintained throughout the supply chain. This revelation opens the possibility of establishing a location-specific certification scheme capable of identifying unauthorized extraction, particularly in sensitive areas like active river channels where sand mining may be illegal.
While cost considerations and accessibility remain potential challenges for industry adoption of traceability methods, the research team explored a machine-learning approach named “sandId.” This method, using photos of sand taken with a smartphone and run on a laptop, demonstrated an 88% effectiveness in identifying the origin of mined concrete sand in the Texas study area. The team believes that this scalable approach could be exported to settings lacking access to specialized and expensive provenance analysis methods.
According to the OECD, sand is the most extracted solid natural resource globally and a crucial component in the majority of human-made constructions. Recent research has highlighted the environmental impact and biodiversity risks associated with construction sand mining. Recognizing the importance of sustainable sand extraction, the U.N. has linked sand to all 17 of its sustainable development goals.
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