Review of mineral resource management in a circular economy infrastructure

Abstract

Purpose is to substantiate foundations of sustainable management of mineral resources while implementing a circular economy model. Methods. The study has applied following research approaches: synthetic method (unification of the singled out aspects); induction method (analysis of a circular economy features); life cycle assessment (evaluation of the product influence on the environment from the viewpoint of each stage of its life cycle); circular economy toolkit (determination and evaluation of the periodicity of circular economy products and indicators); and circular economy indicator prototype (evaluation of the cyclic product efficiency). Findings. Circular economy is one of the key directions of a sustainable development policy as for conservation and protection of mineral resources; it is aimed at more efficient use and improvement of raw material extraction from industrial waste. Formation of a market infrastructure of the circular economy has been proposed based upon mining sector waste use to process it and reduce as well as to repurpose wasteless production and secondary processing of raw materials. The need has been substantiated to contribute to conservation of mineral resources for their sustainable use on the basis of the development of market infrastructure of a stable economy and mining sector waste use to process it and reduce as well as to repurpose wasteless production and secondary processing of raw materials. Originality. A concept for further development of the circular economy market infrastructure has been specified as a platform of production waste supply/demand to optimize the use and conservation of mineral resources on the principles of sustainable growth. It has been proposed to analyze assessment of business development along the lines of a circular economy while calculating parameters when manufacturing is applying primary mineral resources and industrial waste as a raw material for its further processing. Practical implications. The proposed approach of interaction between economic entities on the basis of a circular economy will provide rational use of mineral resources and contribute to the development of a sector of industrial waste processing. The abovementioned will help terminate decrease in the availability of mineral resources and form new milestones of social development on the principles of environmental friendliness and rationalism in the process of interaction with nature.