ABSTRACT
Raw materials are crucial for society to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. In an effort to allow better-informed and clearer decision making with respect to the development of natural resources for sustainable development, the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe has developed two complementary frameworks: 1) the United Nations Framework Classification (UNFC) and 2) the United Nations Resource Management System. Use of the UNFC is picking up momentum in Europe and internationally. With both the EU Critical Raw Materials Act referencing the UNFC and the African Mining Vision developing the Pan-African Resource Reporting Code (PARC) and the Africa Mineral and Energy Resources Classification and Management System (AMREC) in line with the UNFC and UNRMS.
In an increasingly busy landscape of codes and legislation, the UNRMS aims to provide an overarching framework so all aspects of sustainable develop are considered. A first-pass application of the UNRMS to South West England illustrates how this system can potentially be used and where it can fit into responsible raw materials management.
Please also see: Cornwall in the limelight at the United Nations – News (exeter.ac.uk)
For an overview of the UNFC and UNRMS, please see: Tom Bide – How tools developed by the UNECE can help with the sustainable supply of raw materials (pastresponsiblerawmaterials.com)
If you are interested in georesources in Cornwall, please see this brochure from a couple of years ago: Cornwall booklet (tevi.co.uk)
BIOGRAPHY
Eva is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow within the UKRI Interdisciplinary Circular Economy Centre for Technology Metals (Met4Tech) based at the Camborne School of Mines and Environment and Sustainability Institute of the University of Exeter. Experienced in petrology, mineralogy, and geochemistry, particularly when applied to ore deposit genesis and sustainable resource development, she has worked on a number of critical mineral resource deposits. Currently, Eva has recently diversified into Circular Economy research, and is currently focussing on how circular economy principals can be embedded in the exploration and extraction of technology metals; with a current focus is on tin, tungsten and lithium in South West England. This investigation has led to further expolration of the application of the United Nations Framework Classification (UNFC) and United Nations Resource Management System (UNRMS) for sustainable development, especially in the context of critical mineral resources at a regional level