The Green Stone Age: Exploration and Exploitation of Minerals for Green Technologies
Global demand for the minerals needed for green technologies, such as solar panels and wind turbines, vastly surpasses that of our current supply. Therefore, diversifying mineral sources and supply chains is paramount to supporting a sustainable future. Recent concerns over dominating players in the supply chain have also fostered a larger interest in critical minerals.
The Green Stone Age addresses these issues by firstly emphasising the role of geology in green technologies, before delving into a diverse range of exploration targets and introducing new developments in exploration data tools. Refreshingly, the drawbacks of mining are not hidden away. Instead, the collated papers actively comment on the environmental, social and governance aspects of mining. They call attention to essential research alongside collaboration from industry and investment from governments. A particular highlight is Hale and Ali (2023), who discuss the mineral fortune of Afghanistan, the history of the region, and the needed next steps for sustainable exploration.
There is a generous focus on European geology, which reflects the editors’ personal region of interest and the boom of critical mineral research in Europe. Despite this, the geology discussed and techniques for exploration will be relevant worldwide, and indeed the discussions also include Canada, Argentina, the Central African Belt and the ocean floor.
I highly recommend this special publication to anyone interested in economic geology and resourcing a sustainable future. The editors have done a fantastic job of compiling a publication that builds upon itself. As such, I advise reading the publication in order. Content-wise, a familiarity with petrology and basic geochemistry is very helpful to digest some of the details, but those without this background should not be deterred. This book is a highly relevant collation of papers, though the nature of a developing sector means it is subject to change. Readers must note that statements on ‘current’ legislation and regulations or government standpoints may soon be outdated. However, the geological fact is unlikely to change and I’m excited to see how this publication inspires further research. It will be a key reference document in the years to come.
Reviewed by Rachel Spanton
Details
BY: M. Smelror, K. Hanghøj, H. Schiellerup (eds.) (2023). Geological Society of London Special Publication No. 526. 346 pp. (hbk)
ISBN: 9781786205735
PRICE: £100 (£50 for Fellows) www.geolsoc.org.uk
