Industry has increased its efficiency from what it was in the past, to the point where its current ecological footprint is a fraction of what it used to be.

Now imagine an industry sector that produces zero waste, is carbon neutral and husbands the earth’s resource endowment for future generations.

The Cooperative Research Centre for Sustainable Resource Processing (CSRP) is searching for technological solutions to progressively eliminate waste and emissions in the minerals cycle, while enhancing business performance and meeting community expectations.

CSRP’s research program is working on things such as developing a low Greenhouse Gas (GHG) concrete from waste materials. Concrete currently contributes more than 5 percent of society’s GHG emissions worldwide.

It is also looking into Biomass, a low GHG potential replacement for coal in metal production.

And it is researching energy efficient liberation and comminution (i.e. grinding of mineral ores), which uses 14 percent of Australia’s electricity! Developing these practical technologies feeds into sustainable development, which involves defining sustainability, how is it measured and how we can achieve it.

All this will contribute to a roadmap toward a healthy, profitable, carbon-constrained, resource limited world.

For more information: Centre for Sustainable Resource Processing, Stevan Green,

Tel: +61 8 6436 8702, www.csrp.com.au