The characterization of technological zinc cycles

A comprehensive accounting of the anthropogenic mobilization of zinc must treat a series of life stages: mining and processing, fabrication, utilization, and end of life. Reservoirs in which zinc resides include the lithosphere, ore and ingot processing facilities, at least a dozen major uses, several intentional and default stockpiles, landfills, and the environment. The flow rates among those reservoirs constitute the technological cycle. If a non-global cycle is being constructed, imports to and exports from the region of interest must also be included. In this paper we discuss generic approaches to the acquisition and evaluation of data for each of the components of anthropogenic zinc cycles over space and time. Data quality and data utility are evaluated, noting that information relevant to technology and resource policy is easier to acquire than is information relevant to human health and ecosystem concerns, partly because the spatial scale required by the latter is considerably smaller and the flow rates rarely analyzed and reported. Despite considerable data limitations, we conclude that information is sufficiently available and accurate to permit reasonably quantitative zinc cycles to be characterized at a variety of spatial scales. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.