#ChinaMining #GlobalExtraction #MiningNations #PerCapitaMining #NonMetallicMaterials #MetalOres #UNEP #Statista
In 2023, China established itself as the world’s largest miner by extracting an unrivaled 34.2 billion tonnes of domestic materials, as reported by the United Nations Environment Programme’s Global Material Flows Database. This monumental figure highlights China’s dominant position in the mining industry, extracting over four times the amount compared to its closest competitors, India and the United States, which extracted 8.03 billion and 7.98 billion tonnes respectively. Notably, this year marked a significant shift with India surpassing the United States for the first time to become the second-largest extractor of domestic materials. These materials comprise various categories including biomass, fossil fuels, metal ores, and non-metallic minerals, underlying the diverse nature of mining operations contributing to this total.
A per capita analysis of domestic material extraction presented by Statista offers a new perspective on global mining activities, showing a drastically different ranking with Australia leading, followed by Canada, and then China. Australia’s per capita extraction stands at an astonishing 102 tonnes, driven primarily by its heavy involvement in metal ores mining, which accounts for approximately 53% of its total extracted materials. This emphasis on metal ores, including valuable commodities like iron, aluminum, and copper, underscores Australia’s leading role in the mining sector, particularly in metal ores.
The global panorama of material extraction in 2023 saw over 104.1 billion tonnes of materials being mined, indicating a significant increase from 96.5 billion tonnes in 2020. Asia and the Pacific region took the lion’s share, accounting for approximately 55% of the global total, demonstrative of the region’s pivotal role in the global mining industry. The diversity in the types of materials extracted, with China’s extraction largely comprising non-metallic materials like sand, gravel, and clay at 70% of its total, contrasts with Australia’s focus on metal ores. This variety highlights the vast differences in natural resource endowment and industrial focus among leading mining nations, shaping the global landscape of material extraction.
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