2014 Fiscal Year Research-status Report
Sustainability and stakeholder engagement for remote deep ocean resources of critical minerals
| Project/Area Number |
26701014
|
|---|
| Research Institution | Kyoto University |
|---|
Principal Investigator |
マクレラン ベンジャミン 京都大学, エネルギー科学研究科, 准教授 (10723455)
|
|---|
| Project Period (FY) |
2014-04-01 – 2016-03-31
|
| Keywords | seabed mining / deep ocean resources / minerals / LCA / stakeholder / sustainability |
|---|
| Outline of Annual Research Achievements |
To date, the project has progressed well, in two parallel components:
1. Life cycle assessment of deep ocean resources
2. Stakeholder engagement on sustainability of deep ocean resources.
For the first component, an extensive review of literature and an initial model of the mining, processing and extraction of metals from deep sea deposits has been developed. The energy and greenhouse gas emissions from these operations have been estimated.
Results of the developments to date have been presented as the model has been progressively improved as publications at the following scientific conferences: Ecobalance 2014; Sustain 2014 and the latest results at ISOPE 2015. This is important, as these results have not been widely researched until now.The model is being given greater detail and improved this year.
For the second component, the progress has been earlier than expected in the initial project plan. With collaboration from Macquarie University (Australia) a survey has been developed to engage stakeholders opinions on deep ocean mining in Japan - this survey is ready to be undertaken this year.The project has also benefited from the input of researchers and company personnel who were met during a period in Australia, at the University of Queensland. Consultations have involved contacts at: CSIRO, ANU, JOGMEC, MCA, Neptune Minerals, Nautilus Minerals among others.
|
| Current Status of Research Progress |
Current Status of Research Progress
2: Research has progressed on the whole more than it was originally planned.
Reason
Some aspects are progressing more smoothly than expected - for example, the survey preparation is already complete, due to the assistance of Macquarie University. Undertaking the survey is left to finalise this year.
On the other hand, the lifecycle assessment has been slightly delayed due to a number of competing requirements for time by duties in Kyoto University and due to the structural inability to hire research assistants long term.
However, the initial development of the model has been completed, and progressive details are being added this year.
Some good publications have been completed and more results are expected to be published soon.
|
| Strategy for Future Research Activity |
Within the next year, this project will complete a stakeholder survey and more detailed LCA model of the lifecycle of deep ocean minerals. This is within the scope of the current project and is expected to be completed as planned.
These results will offer a detailed view of the stakeholder opinion on deep ocean minerals extraction in Japan as well as a clearer picture of the environmental impacts and benefits that deep ocean resources could have.
As this project will come to an end in March, 2016, further research funding will be applied for.
The plans for this research are to expand more into a consideration of critical minerals and the impacts that moving to unconventional resources such as deep ocean minerals or recycling-based extraction will have on the environmental impacts of minerals.
Currently some funding is being pursued in this area as an international collaboration with Australian institutes.
|
