A Second Iron Age Ahead

The distribution of chemical elements in the Earth's crust sets natural limits to man's supply. The annual per capita consumption of newly mined mineral products for all the peoples of the world now totals 3.75 metric tons and includes coal, oil, iron, copper, cement, etc. The total is still rising and doubling every decade. A failure in the supply of one metal results in the application of another metal. The author contends that the natural limits of the chemical elements is more important than the energy shortages. Without metals, little of the available energy could be used. The paper explores the way metals occur, and an attempt is made to place in perspective the limitations this may ultimately impose. The decline in the availability of metals will in part be controlled by international politics. The production of scarce metals now lies in unexploited areas, mainly less-inhabited areas of Asia such as Siberia, central and northern portions of Africa, much of South America, Australia and Antarctica, and the ocean floor. The author believes that in less than a century the second iron age will dawn. (MCW)