Scenarios for anthropogenic copper demand and supply in China: implications of a scrap import ban and a circular economy transition

Dong, Di; Espinoza, Luis A. Tercero; Loibl, Antonia; Pfaff, Matthias; Tukker, Arnold; Voet, Ester van der

doi:10.1016/j.resconrec.2020.104943

Cited by 38 publications

(32 citation statements)

References 51 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Zeng et al 20 , Dong et al 23 , Eheliyagoda 42 , Liu et al 17 , and Wang et al 21 show that China’s domestic copper scrap generation cannot meet its increasing raw material demand and we confirm these results. We also demonstrate that the solid waste import ban results in increased primary refining and concentrate imports within China to account for refineries’ loss of secondary material, generating effects throughout the material system that produce increasing environmental impacts.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 74%

“…Recent policies affecting copper scrap include the announcement of the ban on Category 7 copper scrap in May 2017 and the imposition of tariffs on US copper scrap imports in August 2018. The ban on Category 7 copper scrap was implemented in December 2018 alongside the announcement of additional restrictions on Category 6 copper scrap imports, set to begin June 2019 23 , 33 . These policies have produced a redistribution of copper scrap trade and compositional changes in China’s scrap imports (Fig.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Studies to date have emphasized the ban’s impact on plastic waste streams, primarily addressing geographical redistribution, increased landfilling, and environmental impacts 8 , 12 , 18 , 19 . Several authors have shown that China’s domestic secondary copper supply is insufficient to meet its increasing metals demand, where Zeng et al, Wang et al, and Dong et al explicitly account for changes in scrap imports 20 – 23 . With prior studies relying on top–down material flow analyses limited to China and primarily addressing potential scrap availability changes, a significant research gap remains in understanding global supply chain reactions stemming from the solid waste import ban, the resulting environmental impacts, and mechanisms for maximizing environmental benefits in China and globally.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Emission impacts of China’s solid waste import ban and COVID-19 in the copper supply chain

Ryter

Bhuwalka

et al. 2021

Nat Commun

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Climate change will increase the frequency and severity of supply chain disruptions and large-scale economic crises, also prompting environmentally protective local policies. Here we use econometric time series analysis, inventory-driven price formation, dynamic material flow analysis, and life cycle assessment to model each copper supply chain actor’s response to China’s solid waste import ban and the COVID-19 pandemic. We demonstrate that the economic changes associated with China’s solid waste import ban increase primary refining within China, offsetting the environmental benefits of decreased copper scrap refining and generating a cumulative increase in CO2-equivalent emissions of up to 13 Mt by 2040. Increasing China’s refined copper imports reverses this trend, decreasing CO2e emissions in China (up to 180 Mt by 2040) and globally (up to 20 Mt). We test sensitivity to supply chain disruptions using GDP, mining, and refining shocks associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, showing the results translate onto disruption effects.

show abstract

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 74%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Emission impacts of China’s solid waste import ban and COVID-19 in the copper supply chain

Ryter

Bhuwalka

et al. 2021

Nat Commun

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…China's solid waste import ban has induced a shift in the location of scrap processing, with Malaysia and other Southeast Asian nations accounting for the majority of recent scrap processing investment ( Figure 2b). Zeng, 19 Dong, 22 Eheliyagoda, 41 Liu, 42 and Wang 20 show that China's domestic copper scrap generation cannot meet its increasing raw material demand and we con rm these results, demonstrating that the solid waste import ban results in increased primary re ning and concentrate imports within China to account for re neries' loss of secondary material. The solid waste import ban's impacts on scrap availability, and consequently price, drive a redistribution of primary re ning from RoW to China and of secondary re ning from China to RoW.…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 52%

“…8,12,17,18 Several authors have shown that China's domestic secondary copper supply is insu cient to meet its increasing metals demand, where Zeng et al, Wang et al, and Dong et al explicitly account for changes in scrap imports. [19][20][21][22] With prior studies relying primarily on top-down material ow analyses, a signi cant research gap remains in understanding supply-chain reactions stemming from the solid waste import ban, the ban's resulting environmental impacts, and mechanisms for maximizing environmental bene ts in China and globally.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Emission impacts of supply chain disruptions for COVID and China’s solid waste import ban

Ryter¹,

Fu²,

Bhuwalka³

et al. 2020

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Climate change will increase the frequency and severity of supply-chain disruptions and large-scale economic crises, also prompting environmentally-protective local policies. Here we use econometric time series analysis, inventory-driven price formation, dynamic material flow analysis, and gate-to-gate life cycle analysis to model the response of each copper supply chain actor to China’s solid waste import ban and the COVID-19 pandemic. We demonstrate that the economic changes associated with China’s solid waste import ban increase primary refining within China, offsetting the environmental benefits of decreased copper scrap refining and generating a cumulative increase in CO2e emissions of up to 35 Mt by 2040. Increasing China’s refined copper imports reverses this trend, decreasing CO2e emissions both in China (up to 300 Mt by 2040) and globally (up to 63 Mt). We test model outcome sensitivity to supply chain disruptions and economic crises using GDP, mining, and refining shocks associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, showing the results maintain impact magnitude alongside disruption effects.

show abstract

A Multidimensional Evaluation Method for the Service Life of Scrapped Copper Wires

Sun

Liu

et al. 2021

Advanced Sustainable Systems

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

To answer ever‐growing challenges in the copper industry, the recycling of secondary copper resources has aroused much interest. However, an evaluation method for the service life of scrapped copper wires is lacking to date. In this work, a data‐based, multicategorized solution is built to rationally assess evolution law of economic value with time flow for recycled copper‐cored wires, covering their one‐way full cycle including reproduction, storage and sale, and final utilization. Here, the results of reproduced cycles, product life, and service life are logically integrated to establish an inherent relation between engineering and sociology by computer science. Such work provides a multiangle perspective for the value evolution emerging in reproduction/application of waste resources. The basic method originating from the current research is expected to throw light on assessing similar scenes.

show abstract

Scenarios for anthropogenic copper demand and supply in China: implications of a scrap import ban and a circular economy transition

Cited by 38 publications

References 51 publications

Emission impacts of China’s solid waste import ban and COVID-19 in the copper supply chain

Emission impacts of China’s solid waste import ban and COVID-19 in the copper supply chain

Emission impacts of supply chain disruptions for COVID and China’s solid waste import ban

A Multidimensional Evaluation Method for the Service Life of Scrapped Copper Wires

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About