It’s a resource we walk on every day, one we believe to be inexhaustible, and yet it’s vanishing. Sand, such a familiar material, has become one of the most exploited raw materials in the world, enough to raise concern among UN experts.

In the shadow of oil and water, another silent crisis is emerging. Sand is now the second most consumed natural resource in the world, just after water. Around 50 billion tons are extracted each year, mostly to meet massive global construction demand.

"No sand means no concrete. And no concrete means no roads, no buildings, no modern cities," summarizes Pascal Peduzzi, director of the UN Environment Programme.

A Resource More Valuable Than It Seems

As a key material in the production of concrete, glass, asphalt, and even electronic components, sand is present in nearly every aspect of our daily lives. From buildings to smartphones, from hospitals to highways, it literally forms the foundation of our modern world.

But a surprising paradox remains: desert sand is unusable for construction. Its grains are too smooth to bind properly. That’s why Gulf countries import sand, sometimes from as far away as Australia or Canada, despite their vast desert landscapes.

Sand, a Victim of Global Trafficking

Due to the colossal demand, sand is now subject to illegal trafficking in several regions of the world. In India, Morocco, Indonesia, and West Africa, "sand mafias" operate outside any legal framework, destroying entire ecosystems and often disregarding the local population.

"Beaches are disappearing, coastal villages are being swallowed. In some cases, environmental activists have been killed for denouncing this trade," warns a local NGO.

These uncontrolled extractions lead to coastal erosion, rising sea levels, loss of farmland, and even threaten the stability of coastal buildings.

A Global Environmental Issue

Though sand appears to be everywhere, its exploitable reserves are limited. Beaches, rivers, and seabeds are being overexploited at rates far beyond their natural replenishment. In short: we are consuming faster than nature can produce.

The UN raised the alarm in 2019, urging countries to better regulate sand extraction and to treat this resource as a strategic commodity.

What Are the Possible Solutions?

Alternatives are emerging: recycling concrete, using bio-sourced materials (raw earth, hemp, natural fibers), and technological innovations. But these still struggle to compete with conventional sand in terms of cost and efficiency.

On top of that, there is a lack of global regulation. To date, no international convention governs sand extraction the way it does for other strategic resources.

A Silent Crisis Deserving More Attention

While the world focuses on fossil fuels or biodiversity, the issue of sand remains largely absent from public discourse. Yet without concrete action, the stability of our ecosystems, cities, and economy is at risk.

Could sand soon become more valuable than gold? A question that once seemed absurd, but may become very real in the near future.