Understanding the Sand Shortage: Why We’re Running Out of Sand
The world uses 50 billion metric tons of sand annually.
Sand is a key ingredient in all concrete and glass production.
There are already ongoing reports of a mafia-style black market for sand.
The world is in crisis yet again. This time around, it’s a sand shortage.
The most-extracted solid material in the world, and second-most used global resource behind water, sand is an unregulated material used extensively in nearly every construction project on Earth. And with 50 billion metric tons consumed annually—enough to build an 88-foot-tall, 88-foot-wide wall around the world—our sand depletion is on the rise, and a completely unregulated rise at that.
Naturally occurring over thousands of years—if not hundreds of thousands of years, most sand originates in the mountains and forms as rivers bring it downstream toward oceans. Sure, head to beaches across the world to feel the sand between your toes, but sand does more than delight beachgoers and build cities. Sand also performs key environmental roles; it is a major factor in protecting from storm surges, ensuring healthy natural habitats for a variety of species, and protecting against erosion.
That was pretty much the gist of my other comment, yeah
My OG gist was that the sand shortage seems like a manufactured crisis (pun unavoidable), so a nitrogen crisis would be next. Because we should be able to make plenty of either.