Études & documents. observation et statistiques. Materials and France s economy Material flow accounting for sustainable resource management

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1 Commissariat général au développement durable n 6 Juin 2009 ENVIRONNEMENT Études & documents Materials and France s economy Material flow accounting for sustainable resource management observation et statistiques Service de l'observation et des statistiques

2 ORTS SOeS Sous-direction de l'information environnementale Juin 2009 Materials and France's economy Material flow accounting for sustainable resource management Ministère de l'écologie, de l'énergie, du Développement durable et de la Mer en charge des Technologies vertes et des Négociations sur le climat

3 Director of publication: Bruno Trégouët Editor in Chief: Françoise Nirascou Author: Céline Jamet Assisted by: Patrice Grégoire Editor: Corinne Boitard Translator: Geoffrey Bird Design-Layout: Chromatique Éditions

4 Sommaire Context of material flow analysis... 9 Material flows mobilized by the french economy...16 Materials extracted within national territory...16 Imports...20 Exports...24 Three approaches to France's material flows...28 Domestic material consumption...28 Foreign trade...32 Resource productivity, material requirement and addition to stock...34 Analysis by material category...38 Minerals used mainly in construction...38 Metal ores and products...42 Biomass and derived products...46 Methodology, sources and a look ahead...50 Bibliography...52

5 List of illustrations 6 types of material flow analysis...11 Material flow accounts balance for France in Constantly increasing resource extraction...17 Domestic extraction used...18 Domestic extraction, used and total (used + unused)...18 Domestic extraction used and unused...19 Materials and products imported into France...20 Imports and imports including indirect flows...21 Imports and associated indirect flows in accordance with degree of processing...21 Imports and associated flows per type of material...22 Exported materials and products...25 Exports and exports including indirect flows...25 Exports and associated indirect flows in accordance with degree of processing...26 Exports and associated indirect flows per type of material...26 Domestic material consumption since Domestic material consumption...29 Domestic material consumption's dependence on imports...30 Comparison for Europe...31 Physical and monetary trade balance (E-I)...32 Material intensity of imports and exports...33 Material productivity and material requirement...34 Proportions of renewable and exhaustible resources...36 Total material requirement...35 Minerals mainly used for construction...38 Unused extracted materials...39 Degree of processing of imported construction materials...39 Imported construction materials...40 Indirect flows mobilised abroad...40 Domestic consumption of minerals mainly used for construction remains, overall, independent of imports...41 Foreseeable exhaustion of main metal ore reserves by Ores and metal products...43 Degree of processing of imported ores and metal products...43 Imports of ores and predominantly-metal products...44 Steel production...45 Non-ferrous metal production...45 Biomass and derived products...46 Domestic extraction of biomass...47 Used domestic extraction of vegetation biomass...47 Degree of processing of products from imported biomass...48 Imports of biomass and of products from biomass...49

6 Summary The amount of resources extracted (by weight) grew by 36 % worldwide between 1980 and 2002 and, according to OECD projections, seems set to reach 80 billion tonnes by Sustainable management and use of natural resources at the global level will require the progressive uptake of a recognised system of accounting for the resources consumed by each country, both within its territory and abroad via imports. Derived indicators would also make it possible to develop and evaluate resource management policies and allow for international comparison. For example, material productivity and domestic material consumption have been adopted as sustainable development indicators in Europe and France, to monitor sustainable consumption and production. Foreseeable growth in world resource consumption The intensity of natural resource extraction varies depending on materials, location, level of economic development, economic structure, trade flows and socio-demographic characteristics. OECD countries occupy a significant position for both use of resources and supply of raw materials. Other countries, such as Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, Russia and South Africa are developing towards similar levels. In the period, it was extraction of metal ores which experienced the greatest growth, reaching 5.8 billion tonnes globally. This will almost double by 2020, reaching 11 billion tonnes. With projected growth of 31 %, biomass extraction (agriculture, forestry, fishing) will progress more slowly, resulting from a reduction in the proportion of renewable resources in global production and use of materials. Per capita extraction levels are high in the OECD area, especially in the countries of North America and the Asia-Pacific region. They appear set to develop further, reaching 22 tonnes per inhabitant by 2020, mainly as a result of increasing demands for coal, metals and minerals for construction. Extraction levels in rapidly developing countries should increase much more rapidly in the same period (+ 50 %) 2, reaching 9 tonnes per inhabitant in Moreover, the world population is expected to increase by around one-third until 2030, placing increasing pressure on the global environment. Sustaining economic growth and improving wellbeing in the long term, while controlling adverse environmental impacts and conserving natural capital, will be a major challenge. In this context, management of environmental impacts arising from extraction, processing, use, recycling and disposal of materials is essential. More coherent management policies are now necessary, combining integrated measures focusing on supply and demand. These will need to be based on reliable information on material and waste flows, and on resource productivity. Quantities extracted In 2002 (billions of tonnes) World Development (%) Global resource extraction Foreseeable development (%) Quantities extracted In 2002 (billions of tonnes OECD countries Development (%) Foreseeable development (%) Total Metal ores Fossil fuels Biomass Other minerals Source: OECD, based on SERI (2006). MOSUS MFA database. Sustainable Europe Research Institute, Vienna, Giljum, et al. (2007). 1 OECD Environmental Outlook to OECD (2008). 2 Giljum et al., 2007.

7 Macroeconomic material flow accounting Macroeconomic material flow accounts show, annually, all of the direct flows that : - enter the economy, - are stored in the technosphere, in the form of infrastructure and durables, - exit the economy in the form of exports, - are discharged into the environment (emissions to the air and water, soil pollution, landfilled waste, etc.). However, the approach also makes it possible to observe the so-called hidden physical flows. In fact, every material or product imported, stored or exported weighs more heavily than by just its measured weight, in terms of all of the physical flows used by an economy. Land, fuels and other materials have been mobilised (extracted, moved, discharged or consumed) for manufacture and transport, either within national boundaries or abroad. These hidden flows distinguish between unused domestic extraction and indirect flows associated with imports and exports. Mobilisation of these materials by an economy can have important environmental impacts such as soil clearance, impacts on natural habitats and endemic species, effects on aquatic environments, loss of soils due to erosion and degradation of landscapes. The results presented here, for the period, give an initial overall picture of the material flows mobilised by France at the macroeconomic level without, for the moment, any further detail of the role of the different economic actors in relation to any given flow. The results constitute an essential part of the knowledge necessary for: political decision makers to analyse France's material needs and to orient strategic choices; and for economic actors, to gain a better understanding of their purchasing choices and behaviour, and to modify these if necessary. Materials used by the French economy Domestic extraction used (DEU) comprises all of the materials, solid, liquid or gaseous, extracted from the soil or subsoil within the territory and continental and marine waters. It has varied little overall in recent years and reached 700 million tonnes in Construction minerals and biomass from agriculture constitute the main flows extracted within the territory. Part of the materials mobilised within the territory during extraction, excavation and induced erosion are considered as unused in the sense that they are not involved in subsequent transformation processes and are, therefore, without economic value. This unused domestic extraction was estimated at 504 million tonnes in Excavated materials and biomass without economic value predominate. The sum of the DEUs and the unused materials associated with their extraction gives an estimate of the total domestic extraction: million tonnes in Imports (I), from raw materials to finished products, increased (by weight) by one-third in 16 years, reaching 364 million tonnes in They are made up of 67 % of fossil fuels, and of ore minerals and products derived from these resources. When the indirect flows associated with imports are included, the flow of imports accounted for at territorial borders is multiplied by five. The indirect flows are the materials mobilised to manufacture a product or produce a service ready to be imported, without being physically imported. A distinction is made between used indirect flows and unused foreign extraction. Like imports, exports (E) have increased since 1990 (+20%), representing 193 million tonnes in Biomass, metal ores and products derived from these two resources account for around two-thirds. Exports also have associated indirect flows. Moreover, the nature of France's imports and exports has changed, tending towards finished products, which generate more associated indirect flows.

8 Domestic material consumption (DMC), is all of the materials physically consumed by the population present within the territory, excluding the hidden flows. It was estimated at 871 millions tonnes in That corresponds to 13.8 tonnes per inhabitant; it has not changed, overall, for 36 years. Domestic consumption is increasingly dependent on imports, particularly metal ores and derived products. Greater material productivity but more materials mobilised The French economy's total material requirement (TMR) corresponds to all of the materials required for the economy to function, mobilised within French territory or abroad. It can be estimated from all of the direct flows (domestic extraction and imports) and hidden flows (unused domestic extraction and indirect flows associated with imports). This total material requirement added up to million tonnes in 2006, i.e. around 46 tonnes per member of the French population. 41 % of TMR was met from domestic extraction of raw materials and 59 % from imports. Direct flows account for only a little more than one-third, the other two-thirds consisting of hidden flows. This proportion reflects the importance of material flows that often go unknown. The economy's total material requirement Indirect flows associated with imports Millions of tonnes Unused domestic extraction Imports Used domestic extraction Material productivity (GDP/DEU + I), relative to direct flows only, increased by 25 % over 16 years: i.e. the French economy produces more from the same quantity of materials. In 2006, 1 kg of material used directly generated 1.5 of GDP.

9 In , resource productivity including hidden flows (GDP/TMR) increased by 23 %, but in this case 1 kg of all materials involved generated only 0.55 of GDP. However, the 9 % increase in the French economy's TMR corresponds to meeting the needs of the French population which itself increased, and of the rest of the world via exports. The resource productivity including hidden flows reflects the global impact, in France and abroad, of the flows of materials mobilised by France. Increase in resource productivity and TMR Index (1990 = 100) /kg 2907 Mt Resource productivity (estimated total) (GDP/TMR) Economy's total material requirement (TMR)

10 Context of material flow analysis Multiple issues surrounding sustainable resource management and use Consumption of natural resources underpins economic development, since natural resources provide the inputs to any production process. Over the past two centuries economic development has been achieved through a production process that is highly linear, i.e. functioning as though reserves were infinite, or nearly so : either because renewable resources (agricultural produce, wood, water, etc.) are assumed to regenerate and new non-renewable ones (fossil fuels, aggregates, metal and non-metal minerals, etc.), exploitable at economically acceptable cost, would inevitably be discovered. Resources were simply taken from the natural environment, processed, used and then discharged back into the environment, although more recently towards the end of the 20th century, environmental impact was reduced by end of pipe techniques and some minimisation. Security of supply at acceptable cost has been an ever present concern, reinforced progressively over the past three or four decades by the increase in the world' population, especially in developing countries. This has become even more the case in recent years with rapid economic development and rising production and consumption in certain highly populated countries such as China and India, which has resulted in a sharp rise in demand for resources. Forecasts from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) are for considerable increases in resources extracted worldwide up to 2020, in relation to 2002 levels: biomass +31%, fossil fuels +39%, non-metallic minerals +54%, and metal ores +92%. OECD also estimates the life expectancy of world reserves of the main metal ores based on known 1992 levels and with a 2 % annual growth rate in primary production to be 30 years for copper, lead, nickel, silver and tin, and 60 and 80 years for aluminium and iron. An era of scarcity is therefore predicted for an increasing number of materials. At the same time, pressure on renewable resources has increased to the point where renewable seems less and less to mean renewed. For fisheries, forests, arable lands and surface and underground freshwater, etc. the rate of extraction may be beyond the threshold for natural regeneration. Moreover, these are pressures that could well increase under the effects of climate change. Other pressures and impacts on the environment generated at each of the different phases of resource consumption, from extraction through to the end of their life cycle, including those induced in transport are building as a mechanical response to this increase in consumption. Pressures include soil clearance and removal of vegetation cover, very often destroying fertile lands or forests; damage to habitats and threats to the survival of endemic species; damage to hydrological systems; additional soil loss due to erosion and rapid run-off of rainwater; consumption of energy, water and other resources; emissions of greenhouse gases and other pollutants to the air, water and soil; and generating of non-recoverable wastes of which the management implies further impacts. Where imports into France are concerned, these pressures and impacts will be felt primarily in other countries. In France itself, while some resources originate mainly within national territory (water, crops, wood, aggregates, minerals), others are imported (uranium ore for generating of electricity, oil, gas, metals, etc.) often in processed form of semi-finished and finished products). Overall, the European Union (EU) is seen to be increasingly dependent on other continents for its resources, thereby increasing its environmental footprint on the rest of the world. It was in this context that one of the principles of the sustainable production and consumption part of the European Sustainable Development Strategy was defined: decoupling of the environmental pressures associated with use of natural resources and raw materials from economic growth. The primary requirement for decoupling is management and control of consumption of renewable and non-renewable natural resources: better productivity for resources used (how many euros are generated by a given unit (of mass) of a resource; reduction in toxicity and ecotoxicity of substances and materials consumed, produced and discharged by the economy; prevention of production of waste; and also a change of viewpoint to start considering waste as a possible resource that provides inputs to the economy, thereby taking a more circular view of the production process (as opposed to a linear view).

11 Strong international and national incentives for material flow accounting and for development of derived indicators Analysis of material flows comes within the framework of an international political impetus for countries to develop material flow accounts and indicators for better resource management on the basis of a clearly defined methodology. In France, macro-economic national material flow accounting was initiated in 2006 by the ministère de l'ecologie, de l'energie, du Développment durable et de l'aménagement du territoire (Meeddat ministry for environment, energy, sustainable development and spatial planning), with project implementation by the Ifen. The pioneering work of some countries and institutions 1 of the United Nations 2 (UN) led the EU to develop methodological guidelines for the development of macro-economic accounts in As a complement, other work was ordered by Eurostat 4 to compensate for the inability of most member states to calculate their own material flow indicators. The European Environment Agency (EEA) makes regular use of these data in its publications 5. Eurostat has introduced one of the material-flows derived indicators into the 12 key indicators for sustainable development in the European Union 6. This type of information is primordial for implementation and monitoring of Europe's strategy for sustainable use of resources introduced in December With a wider scope, the OECD, via its 2004 recommendation and in its work plan on material flows and resource productivity, invites member countries to develop such accounting and analytical activities. In 2008, it published a complete methodological guide on material flows and resource productivity 8, for different levels of the economy and materials. In the same year, the OECD Council adopted a recommendation on resource productivity supporting the development of material flow accounts, the improvement of resource productivity and the reduction of environmental impacts in member countries. The OECD's support accompanies that of the G8, expressed and stipulated each year since 2003, notably via its support for the Japanese 3R's initiative 9 for better resource management. In line with this movement, and in order to further it, France included the following objective in the 2006 revised version of its national sustainability strategy 10 (II.d.2): the development (as is already the case in a number of European countries) of instruments for the statistical observation of flows of raw materials and natural sources from and to France in order to observe the vulnerabilities of our development model and provide a basis for international comparison. 1 Adriaanse et al. (1997). Resource Flows; the Material Basis of Industrial Economies. World Resources Institute Report. Matthews et al. (2000). The Weight of Nations: Material Outflows from Industrial Economies. World Resources Institute Report. World Resources Institute. Washington D.C. 2 United Nations, European Commission, IMF, OECD, World Bank. (2003). Handbook of National Accounting Integrated Environmental and Economic Accounting, United Nations. Latest version. 3 Eurostat. (2001). Economy-wide Material Flow Accounts and Derived Indicators: a Methodological Guide. Eurostat. Luxembourg. 4 (Carried out by Wuppertal Institut für Klima, Umwelt und Energie). Material Use Indicators for the European Union, : Indicators and Analysis. Eurostat. (2001). (by Fakultät für Interdisziplinäre Forschung und Forbildung (IFF)-Institut für soziale ökologie). (2004). Development of Material Use in the EU-15: Types of Materials, Cross-country Comparison and Indicator Improvement. (Draft report for Eurostat). IFF. 90p. Wien, 5 For example: EEA. (2005). Sustainable Use and Management of Natural Resources. EEA, report No. 89. Copenhagen. 6 See: 7 COM (2005) 670 final. This establishes the un-quantified objective of: reducing the environmental impact of resource use while at the same time improving resource productivity overall across the EU economy. 8 OECD. (2008). Measuring Material Flows and Resource Productivity (Volume 1: the OECD Guide; Volume 2: The Accounting Framework; Volume 3: Inventory of Country Activities; Volume 4: Implementing National Material Flow Accounts; completed by a Synthesis Report). 9 Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. 10 The national sustainability strategy has reached its term. The new strategy is being prepared. 10

12 Different types of material flow analysis, different accounting tools Material flow accounting and analysis can be carried out at all levels of the economy (products, companies, sectors, national economy), material system or territory (substance, territory or specific material), depending on the issues considered, the level of detail and scale of study envisaged. The OECD distinguishes 6 ways to analyse material flows. One or several commonly used accounting tools correspond to each of the 6 ways, providing knowledge and understanding of the movement of flows in a system being examined. The tools address: - a particular substance; - a material system; - a product's life cycle; - businesses; - areas of activity; - the whole of the economy. 6 types of material flow analysis Issue of concern Object of interest Specific concerns related to environmental impacts and technology development General environmental and economic problems relating to throughput within businesses companies, economic of substances materials, manufactured goods activities, countries, regions associated with at the level of Substances Materials Products Businesses Economic Countries, activities regions chemical establishments elements or enterprises compounds raw materials, semifinished goods batteries, cars, computers, textiles mining, construction, chemical industry, iron & steel total materials, groups of materials, particular materials Type of analysis Substance flow analysis Material systems analysis Life cycle assessment Business level MF analysis Input-Output analysis Economywide MF analysis Type of measurement tool Substance flow analysis Material system analysis Life cycle inventories Business material flow accounts Physical inputoutput tables, NAMEA type approaches Economywide material flow accounts Source: OECD, 2002, from Bringezu and Moriguchi. These different types of approach and of knowledge are complementary. In particular, the NAMEA input-output tables approach allows, for a given flow, examination of the responsibilities of different areas of economic activity and the exchanges between them, whereas macroeconomic material flow accounting considers the economy as a black box. Macro-level material flow accounting In macro-level material flow accounting, the principle of conservation of mass is applied to the economy: there must be a balance between what goes in, what comes out and what is stored by the system (the economy), i.e. the stock corresponding to the difference between what goes in and what comes out. Macro-level material flow accounting thus provides an annual account of all of the used (material) flows: 11

13 - entering the economy; - stored in the technosphere 1 in the form of infrastructure and durable goods; - exiting the economy in the form of exports; - discharged/released into the environment (emissions to air, discharges to water, soil pollution, landfilled waste, etc.). However, this approach also throws light on the physical flows referred to as hidden. In fact, every material extracted or product imported, exported or stored in the technosphere weighs more heavily than by just its measured weight, in terms of all of the physical flows used by the economy. Land, fuels and other materials have been mobilised (extracted, moved, discharged or consumed) for manufacture and transport, either within national boundaries or abroad. These hidden flows distinguish between unused (material) flows and indirect flows associated with imports and exports (see box below). What are unused extraction and indirect flows? Materials mobilised during extraction and the induced erosion (and also after ploughing) are referred to as unused extraction in the sense that they do not undergo any further processing and do not therefore acquire any economic value. When extraction takes place within national boundaries it is referred to as unused domestic extraction. Although they have no economic value, the mobilisation of these materials by the economy greatly affects the environment. For instance, extraction of metal ores requires excavation of large amounts of earth which, even if they can be used as infill at other sites (gravel pits, quarries, etc.), nonetheless has severe impacts: soil clearance and removal of vegetation cover, very often destroying fertile lands or forests; damage to habitats and threats to the survival of endemic species; damage to hydrological systems; additional soil loss due to erosion and rapid run-off of rainwater; degradation of landscapes. Indirect flows are upstream from-cradle-to-border inputs, i.e. mobilised for manufacture of a product or provision of a service ready to be imported or exported, minus the mass (weight) of the actual product. These flows are not physically imported or exported. A distinction is made between used indirect flows and unused extraction (abroad in the case of an import, within national boundaries for an export). For instance, an imported new car weighing tonnes is recorded as such in the customs statistics. But other quantities of materials have been used in one or several countries to make the materials present in the car. Energy has also been used to extract, process and transport them. Painting has required solvents. All of these quantities, hidden and not recorded at borders, are nonetheless real and must be considered when looking at an economy's total material requirement. The flows can be more easily quantified for raw materials (it is above all the fuels providing the energy for extraction and transport that are missing) than for a finished product. In general, calculation of these flows becomes increasingly complex as the product nears the finished stage. In spite of these difficulties, the issue of estimating these flows is an important one given the increase in finished products and services in imports and exports. Monitoring of their structure in terms of main categories (raw materials, semi-finished products, finished products) gives a good indication of the evolution of difference between the economy's measured material requirement monitored with indicators such as the Domestic Material Input and Domestic Material Consumption (see Box Key Derived Macro-level Material Flow Indicators ) and the total requirement (estimated by the Total Material Requirement or Total Material Consumption). Whether mobilised directly or indirectly, observed or estimated, all of these flows are recorded in tonnes, regardless of their scarcity or their toxicity. They may be substances such as chemical elements or compounds (cadmium, nitrates, etc.) or more complex products (textiles, automobiles, etc.) in the case of imports. By providing an overview of all of the material flows mobilised by the economy, including those that do not enter it physically, macro-level material flow accounting gives information on a country's total material requirement. As consumption of any material is almost always accompanied by environmental impacts, a country's total material requirement is a good approach to ascertaining its global environmental impact. 1 The technosphere embodies all of the products of human activities (production, processing) such as infrastructure, buildings, consumer durables. The term is coined in opposition to the ecosphere which, mainly, represents the natural environment. 12

14 The scope, aims and limits of this study All input flows and exports are evaluated in this document: - Materials extracted within France's territory used by the economy (e.g. grown cereals, harvested wood, metal ores, coal, oil, etc.), grouped under the name of domestic extraction used, and unused domestic extraction consisting of materials extracted, produced or simply moved but not entering the nation's economy (e.g. excavated materials on construction sites, agricultural waste left in fields) (see Materials Extracted within National Territory chapter). - Imports covering all of the raw materials and manufactured products from abroad and physically entering France as well as the indirect flows associated with imports, corresponding to all of the materials moved or used in the country of origin to produce the raw materials or semi-finished/finished products imported into France but not physically entering the economy (see Imports chapter). - Exports of all of the materials or finished/semi-finished products leaving France (see Exports chapter). The flows stored and discharged into the natural environment are accounted for in a second phase, so as to produce a balanced national physical account. The method used is based on the guidelines produced by Eurostat in 2001 and by the OECD in Calculation of all of the hidden flows (unused domestic extraction and indirect flows associated with imports and exports) is based, for the most part, on a methodology developed by the Wuppertal Institut für Klima Umwelt, Energie GmbH (Germany). This produces estimates based on a variety of sources, notably life cycle data. The estimates indicate the order of magnitude of these hidden flows, to be compared with flows of materials used (see Imports chapter). Based on these flow accounts, aggregated indicators are derived for all recorded materials: DEU, I, E, DMI, TMR, DMC, TMC and PTB (see box overleaf). These are the conventional indicators promoted by the international organisations and adopted by countries engaged in similar work. These aggregated indicators are useful for developing and evaluating environmental policies. Some of them, the TMC and TMR in particular, can be considered as global environmental and sustainability indicators complementary to GDP 1. In the following chapters the indicators obtained are used on their own but are also used with other variables (population, GDP, etc.) to provide elements of a response on the changes in France's domestic consumption pattern, its physical balance, and on the dematerialisation (or not) of its economy. 1 See Ifen document Les indicateurs globaux d'environnement et de développement durable (2008). Accessible at 13

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16 Main derived macro-level material flow indicators Input indicators: - DEU (Domestic Extraction Used): all of the materials, solid, liquid or gaseous, extracted from the soil or subsoil within the territory and continental and marine waters. They include mineral and fossil materials, biomass (produce of agriculture, forestry), and fisheries. - I (Imports): all types of imports from raw materials to finished products. - DMI (Direct Material Input): all of the materials physically entering the economy DMI = DEU + I - TMR (Total Material Requirement): all of the materials required for the economy to function, mobilised in the country or abroad. TMR = DMI + unused domestic extraction + indirect flows associated with imports. Output indicators: - E (Exports): all types of exports from raw materials to finished products. - DPO (Domestic Processed Output): all of the materials discharged to the environment from the economy including those induced by manufacturing of products exported: emissions to air and water, dispersed materials (fertilisers), landfilled waste. Domestic consumption indicators: - DMC (Domestic Material Consumption): total amount of material physically consumed by the population present within the territory. DMC = DEU + I + E - TMC (Total Material Consumption): total amount of material physically consumed by the population present within the territory, including unused domestic extraction + indirect flows associated with imports indirect flows associated with exports 1. Other indicators can be derived: - PTB (Physical Trade Balance): as opposed to the monetary trade balance. Physical trade balance: PTB = E I Physical trade balance including indirect flows : PTB = E + indirect flows associated with exports I indirect flows associated with imports. - NAS (Net Additions to Stock): the physical growth of an economy is measured by the net additions to stock. It corresponds to the difference between new materials added each year to the technosphere, in the form of buildings, infrastructure, consumer durables (cars, industrial and household equipment, etc.) and the old materials removed from it without recycling (landfilling of demolition waste, consumer durable residues, etc.). All of these physical indicators can be used together or with other variables: population, GDP or other monetary indicators, etc. 1 Unused domestic extraction associated with exports is included in the term indirect flows associated with exports. 15

17 Material flows mobilised by the French economy Materials extracted within national territory France extracted 700 million tonnes of materials in 2006, i.e tonnes per inhabitant. Minerals mainly used for construction and the produce of agriculture and fisheries accounted for most of the materials extracted within the nation's territory. If unused materials are included, the total per capita domestic extraction is estimated at 19.1 tonnes. These materials consist mostly of biomass without economic value and excavated material. Definition Domestic extraction corresponds to the materials extracted and produced on French territory 1 and used by the economy. There are three major groups of materials: biomass; minerals and metal ores and fossil fuels. Biomass consists of: - biomass from agriculture such as cereal crops, oilseed or proteinaceous crops, fruits, vegetables, etc. for animal or human consumption (direct consumption, industrial use, processing, seeds); - forest biomass corresponding to harvested timber, wood for industrial use and firewood as well as minor forest products (hunting, gathering, etc.); - biomass from fisheries consisting of the fish, crustaceans, shellfish and cephalopods caught by French vessels and landed in or outside of France and fished in continental waters. The biomass resulting from hunting and other activities is considered as relatively marginal. Minerals are of two types: - minerals used for construction, mainly gravel and sand for construction, ornamental stone (marble, granite, sandstone, etc) or limestone, gypsum, slate, etc. - industrial minerals corresponding, for example, to those used for chemical fertilisers or salt or other extracted products such as natural graphite, quartz, mica, etc. The metal ores category includes ferrous and non-ferrous ores (copper, nickel, zinc, etc.). Raw metal ores are fully accounted for under domestic extraction used, regardless of the metal content of the ore. The fossil fuels category covers production of oil, natural gas, coke, compressed fuels, coal, lignite and recovered materials (coal waste, mixed with impurities, from settling tanks and from which energy is recovered in thermal plants). 1 The study focus area is Metropolitan France and its overseas departments (Guadeloupe, Martinique, Guyana and Reunion Island). The data for the latter are included in so far as they are available. 16

18 Quantities extracted, (billions of tonnes) Constantly increasing resource extraction World Change (%) Global resource extraction Foreseeable change (%) Quantities extracted (billions of tonnes) OECD countries Change (%) Quantities extracted (billions of tonnes) Total Metal ores Fossil fuels Biomass Other minerals Source OECD, based on SERI (2006), MOSUS MFA database, Sustainable Europe Research Institute, Vienna, Giljum et al. (2007). Extract from OECD. (2008). Measuring Material Flows and Resource Productivity (synthesis report). 55p. Paris. The amount of resources extracted (by weight) grew by 36 % worldwide between 1980 and It is expected to increase by half as much again by 2020, to reach 80 billion tonnes. Mineral ore extraction, which increased most in the preceding period, seems set to double by The 30 OECD member countries alone extracted 42 % of natural resources in 2002 and as much as 55 % for the other minerals (industrial and for construction). However, domestic extraction of raw materials does not take place without loss or movement of other materials that do not have economic value, referred to as unused domestic extraction. Such materials are found at different stages of extraction: - Unused material from harvested biomass corresponding to harvest residues and parts of plants not harvested and left in or on the ground, and playing a role in the organic composition of the soil. Erosion of arable lands is also included in this category. Unused flows from forestry consisting of the branches and leaves left on the ground after cutting of trees and having the same biological role as the unused agricultural biomass are minor. - Unused materials from extraction and mining, corresponding to the materials moved to access energy carrying materials (e.g. lignite) or non-energy materials (e.g. construction stone, clay, etc.). - Unused material from excavations consisting of material extracted for construction of buildings and infrastructure. Although these materials have no direct economic value, they are mobilised, or at the least moved, by a production process and must therefore be accounted for. If they were traded, they would be covered by domestic extraction. Furthermore, there may be one or more environmental impacts associated with their movement: forest clearance, loss of arable land, loss of natural habitats, water pollution, etc. Conversely, the plant wastes left in the fields contribute to enriching of the land and increase soil fertility. The sum of the DEU and of the materials associated with this extraction, unused and without economic value, thus provides an estimate of total domestic extraction. Findings Minerals for construction are the materials most extracted within French territory The amount of materials extracted within France's territory has changed little since 1990, going from 709 million tonnes in 1990 to 700 million tonnes in 2006, after an increase of more than 20 % over the past 20 years. The slight decrease is due, mainly, to the progressive phasing out of coal extraction and of metal ores. Minerals extracted (for industry or principally for construction) constitute the largest input flow to the economy, reaching 452 million tonnes in 2006, i.e. 7.2 tonnes/inhabitant. Most of the minerals extracted are used for construction and consist, mainly, of gravels and sands. Construction minerals amounted to around 439 million tonnes or 7 tonnes per inhabitant in 2006 Materials from agriculture and fishing, intended for human or animal consumption, constitute the second material flow extracted in the territory, with 220 million tonnes or 3.5 tonnes per inhabitant extracted in Biomass production is, however, much affected by climatic 17

19 and meteorological conditions. For instance, a decrease in cereal crops was observed in 2003, as a result of drought. Wood production has remained constant at around 26 million tonnes per year. Domestic extraction Natural gas Millions of tonnes Oil Coal Industrial minerals Construction minerals Metal ores Biomass from forestry (w ood) Source : SOeS (Service de l'observation et des statistiques) Biomass from agriculture and fishing Conversely, production of fossil fuels, already low at the start of the 1970s, is now almost inexistent as a result of the abandoning of coal extraction for reasons of cost (Lorraine, Nord-Pas-de-Calais regions) and the end of operation of gas fields (Lacq planned in 2013). The requirement for energy source materials is met by very large amounts of imports (oil and gas). Metal ore extraction is following the same pattern. Estimated total domestic extraction greater than that measured In 2006, the total of materials extracted within French territory was estimated at around 1,204 million tonnes, i.e. 72 % greater than the measured quantity. Estimated total domestic extraction was therefore 19.1 tonnes per inhabitant in 2006 against 11.1 tonnes per inhabitant for domestic extraction used. Domestic extraction, used and total (used + unused) domestic extraction used Index (1990 = 100) t/inhab 19.1 t/inhab domestic extraction used per inhabitant domestic extraction used + unused domestic extraction used + unused per inhabitant Excavated and biomass materials without economic value weigh most heavily on unused domestic extraction In 2006, extraction of 1 kilogram of materials used was accompanied by 719 grams of material with no economic value. 18

20 Extracted materials classed as unused and moved to make way for building foundations or infrastructure constituted half of the unused extracted materials in They even account for one-third of all of the materials (used or unused) mobilised for buildings and public works. Although construction minerals make up the largest quantities of materials extracted within French territory, the unused part associated with them is relatively small. Domestic extraction, used and unused 800 Excavation 700 Fossil fuels Millions of tonnes Industrial minerals Construction m inerals Metal ores Wood 0 Extraction used Extraction unused Extraction used Extraction unused Materials from agriculture and fishing (including soil erosion) Plant residues left in the fields after harvesting and agricultural materials as well as soils lost by erosion of arable land (a phenomenon caused, in part, by the intensification of agriculture) account for 35 % of unused domestic extraction. In addition, one-third of fishing catch is thrown back into the water without any certainty of survival. This flow, estimated at around 191,000 tonnes in 2006, appears low in comparison with the other quantities but it, in fact, constitutes an important issue both for the environment and for food supply, given the declining fisheries resources. Methodology Unused domestic extraction is estimated using technical coefficients specific to each flow. To deduce the unused weight, the used weight is multiplied by the technical coefficient for the flow in question. The coefficients are, mostly, from the Wuppertal Institut für Klima, Umwelt, Energie GmbH, which has evaluated them for Germany on the basis of various sources in the literature, foreign studies or German statistics on agriculture, waste and extractive activities, etc. Several of the coefficients have been compared with those used by other countries, including Italy and Switzerland. The coefficients were first used for a technical report, Total Material Requirement of the European Union, published by the European Environment Agency in 2001, and for the Globalisation and the Shifting Environmental Burden Material Trade Flows of the European Union report, published by the Wuppertal Institut für Klima, Umwelt, Energie GmbH, in The coefficients have since been used by other countries such as Italy and Switzerland. Only 40 % of the 130 extractable materials recorded have a technical coefficient. This may lead to an under-estimation of the unused part of domestic extraction. 19

21 Imports France's imports increased by around one-third in 16 years, reaching 364 million tonnes in 2006, i.e. 5.8 tonnes/inhabitant. Fossil fuels and derived products, as well as metal ores and predominantly-metal products, accounted for two-thirds of imports. If the indirect flows mobilised in other countries are included, total imports are estimated at 27 tonnes per inhabitant: that is five times the amount counted at the country's borders. There are more and more imports of finished and semi-finished products, generating associated indirect flows. Definition Materials imported into France are counted in all of their forms, whether raw materials (oil, cereals, raw cotton, copper ore, fruits, natural cork, etc.), semi-finished products (copper or zinc prealloys, diesel, bituminous mixtures, sawn wood, wood chips, etc.) or finished products (machines and transport equipment, glass goods, processed foods, wine, cloths in wool or silk, toys, clothes, musical instruments, etc.). However, associated with these direct used flows are indirect flows which never physically cross the borders into France. During the extraction, manufacturing, packaging and transport phases, other materials have been mobilised in other countries but these do not penetrate into French territory. These indirect flows associated with imports are, for example, the material rejected when concentrating ores, materials excavated and moved but not used, energy consumed in an industrial manufacturing process or required for transport or space heating, or chemicals used in the manufacture of a product. The indirect flows associated with imports are calculated from coefficients specific to each flow. The sum of the quantities of materials imported physically and associated indirect flows gives an estimate of total imports. Findings The amount of materials imported has risen by around one-third since 1990 Imports increased by around one-third between 1990 and 2006, reaching 364 million tonnes. Oil, in its refined or crude form (diesel and heating oil), is the most imported material accounting for around 33 % of the total. The proportion of fossil fuels represented by oil, coal and natural gas, as well as products composed mainly of these such as organic chemicals, plastics in primary or other form or synthetic rubber, account for more than 50 % of imports. Metal ores and predominantly-metal products (machines and transport equipment including cars, some household appliances) are next in line, at 17 % of imports. Iron and steel account for 64 % of this flow and metal-based products for 25 %. Materials and products imported into France 400 Other products 350 Predominantly fossil fuel based products 300 Natural gas and derived products Millions of tonnes Oil (including refined) Coal and derived products Industrial minerals and predominantly nonmetallic products Minerals used primarily in construction 50 Metal ores and predominantly-metal products Wood and derived products Biomass from agriculture and fishing 20

22 The quantity of biomass and of products from biomass has increased by around 58 % since 1990; it reached 58 million tonnes in The share of biomass in the imports total also increased, going from 13 % in 1990 to 16 % in Wood and derived products, such as wood fibre panels or veneered or laminated woods containing quantities of tropical varieties account for around one-third of biomass imports. Imports with indirect flows estimated to be five times greater than imports In 2006, the functioning of France's economy (domestic consumption and production of exported goods and services) required apparent imports of 5.8 tonnes per inhabitant. Inclusion of the indirect flows associated with imports brings total imports to 27 tonnes per inhabitant or the equivalent of more than 1,700 million tonnes of materials. That is almost five times the amount counted at the borders of the territory. This difference must be taken into account in the analysis of the economy's material productivity or intensity (see Resource Productivity, Material Requirement and Addition to Stock chapter). Imports and estimated imports with indirect flows Imports More and more finished and semi-finished products imported, more associated indirect material flows Imports have not only increased in terms of quantity, they have also evolved structurally, moving towards more finished goods. The share of raw materials decreased between 1990 and 2006 in favour of semi-finished and finished goods for which the share of imports, by weight, rose from 41 % to 46 % (semi-finished and finished products combined). In 2006, importing of these finished and semi-finished products generated around 70 % of associated indirect flows. Index (1990 = 100) t/inhab 27 t/inhab Imports per inhabitant Imports with indirects flows Imports with indirects flows per inhabitant Imports and associated indirect flows in accordance with degree of processing In millions of tonnes Finished products Semi-finished products Raw materials 0 Imports Indirect flow s Imports Indirect flow s This change in imports reflects growing requirements linked to population growth, increasing standard of living and also to developments in production methods and consumption patterns, especially the decline of certain industrial activities in favour of service related activities: what is not produced within the territory is imported at a more advanced stage of processing. This causes displacement of environmental pressures 21