Coal
- Coal is the single largest commodity carried by Canadian railways, with more than 30 million tonnes moving along them annually.
- Steelmaking coal is required to build infrastructure necessary to reduce GHG emissions, such as rapid transit and wind turbines.
Sources: Coal Association of Canada, www.teck.com
Copper
- Each new generation of cars needs more copper wiring than the one before. In the manufacturing process, cars that run on gasoline typically require 55 pounds (24.94 kg) of copper wiring. Hybrid cars need around 110 pounds (49.89 kg) of copper wiring, and electric cars need 165 pounds (74.84 kg) of copper wiring.
- Newly developing energy sources require a great deal of copper to run. For example, each megawatt of wind power capacity uses an average of 3.6 tonnes of copper. Electric trolleys, buses and subway cars use about 2,300 pounds of copper apiece.
Source: Business Insider
Zinc
- Zinc energy storage systems, which can power hearing aids, vehicles, computers and other electronic appliances, produce zero emissions.
- Zinc is the 24th most abundant element in the Earth’s crust and has been present ever since the planet formed its surface.
Sources: www.zinc.org
Energy
- The International Energy Agency projects that by 2040, the world will need 32% more energy than what is being produced today.
- Alberta’s oil sands has the third-largest oil reserves in the world, after Venezuela and Saudi Arabia.
Sources: International Energy Agency, Government of Alberta
