Sand is often extracted from rivers for use in construction Does the world have a shortage of sand? At first, that might sound like a peculiar question. After all, sand covers vast expanses of ...

That strain is not from increasing demand for gold, diamonds, or copper, but for sand, the primary material for construction and hence for economic development. Concrete and glass are made mostly of ...

The environmental consequences of sand mining are immense. Across Asia, rivers are shrinking, coastlines eroding and ecosystems unravelling.