Navigating the Sustainability Conundrum of Construction Sand

Mehjabee Mahmud Mattra, Mohammad Sujauddin, Mohammad Mosharraf Hossain, Jeongsoo Yu (), Xiaoyue Liu and Gaku Manago
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Mehjabee Mahmud Mattra: Department of Environmental Science and Management, North South University, Bashundhara, Dhaka 1229, Bangladesh
Mohammad Sujauddin: Department of Environmental Science and Management, North South University, Bashundhara, Dhaka 1229, Bangladesh
Mohammad Mosharraf Hossain: Institute of Forestry and Environmental Science, University of Chittagong, Chattogram 4331, Bangladesh
Jeongsoo Yu: Graduate School of International Cultural Studies, Tohoku University, Sendai 980-8576, Japan
Xiaoyue Liu: Graduate School of International Cultural Studies, Tohoku University, Sendai 980-8576, Japan
Gaku Manago: Graduate School of International Cultural Studies, Tohoku University, Sendai 980-8576, Japan

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 18, 1-24

Abstract: Sand is the backbone of modern civilization and faces heightened demand in the Anthropocene. The uncontrolled extraction of sand raises concerns regarding its irreversible ecological impact. The sand industry is not well understood, especially from the perspective of sustainability. To address this knowledge gap, this systematic review combines policy analysis with the use of material flow analysis (MFA) indicators, environmental externalities, and geopolitics to assess the overall sustainability of the sand industry. By utilizing trade data, this study identified the primary importers and exporters of sand within each continent and selected the top 3–4 countries for analysis. Based on these countries, relevant studies in the literature on the trade and domestic extraction of sand and that used the principles of MFA were found to assess the patterns of its consumption. Illicit sand mining adds a further challenge regarding data accuracy and verification. This study revealed that China’s consumption of sand surpasses that of all the other countries studied, at 17,700 million tonnes, and China has the highest mass of recycled aggregates in use. Using gross domestic product as a proxy for size of the economy, it was found that China consumed 0.001251 million tonnes of sand per million USD. European nations showed a striking balance in their sand industries by placing equal importance on using virgin sand and recycled aggregates, thus contributing to a circular economy. The use of MFA for future research can reveal hidden flows by positioning itself as a science–policy interface, enabling greater circularity within the lock-ins of the construction sector.

Keywords: sustainability; MFA indicators; environmental assessment; geopolitics; circular economy (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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