Mineral Resources

We live in a mineral-based world. It has been said that “if you can’t grow it, you have to mine it”. Indeed, virtually everything we use on a daily basis is manufactured from the Earth’s mineral resources. Mineral raw materials provide us with our basic needs – energy, infrastructure, transportation, technology and more.

In EGS this topic is dealt with in the Mineral Resources Expert Group.
A number of European and regional projects have been carried out during the last decades in order to address mineral resources related issues. GeoERA substantially increased the knowledge about Mineral Resources.

Related projects

ProSUM

Prospecting Secondary raw materials in the Urban mine and Mining wastes

The project delivered the first Urban Mine Knowledge Data Platform with information on secondary raw materials. The platform was linked to the M4EU da...

Minerals4EU

Minerals Intelligence Network for Europe

A minerals intelligence network with a database providing access to an overview of European raw materials and a European Minerals Yearbook was created...

SCRREEN2

Networking to secure rare earth elements

Launched to develop the SCRREEN expert network to cover all raw materials. Specifically, SCRREEN2 will develop the network and publish sector-oriented...

SCRREEN

Synergic Circular Economy across European Regions

SCRREEN was a Horizon 2020 funded project (2016 – 2019) which aimed to bring together European initiatives, associations, clusters, and projects worki...

ORAMA

Optimising data collection for Primary and Secondary raw materials

ORAMA project enhanced raw materials data collection, tackling challenges of availability, coverage, accessibility, standardization, quality, and them...

RESEERVE

Mineral Potential of the ESEE Region

The RESEERVE project mapped the mineral resources of the six ESEE countries: Albania, BIH, Croatia, Serbia, Montenegro and Northern Macedonia

EuroLithos

European Ornamental stone resources

European Ornamental stone resources (EuroLithos) project increased knowledge of the geology, quality and history of use of natural stone in Europe

Mintell4EU

Mineral Intelligence for Europe

The location of (potential) European mineral resources is of increasing interest to policy makers and stakeholders as the need for raw materials for t...

Other Scientific Themes

Basic Geology

Multiscale space-related datasets and data products are the fundamental components of geological baseline information delivered by national geological survey organisations. These datasets and products show and explain the geological architecture of the surface and subsurface of the Earth’s crust.

Boreholes

EGDI contains data on different sets of boreholes. Currently a WMS services is available.

Earth Observations and Geohazards

The systematic observation of the Earth’s surface and the monitoring of ground deformation allows the precise mapping and assessment of geohazards. Geohazards can have severe impacts on human lives and properties and may lead to serious socio-economic consequences.

Geochemistry

Chemical elements are the Earth’s building blocks. Geochemistry is the study of the distribution and concentration of Earth’s elements.

GeoEnergy

Energy is vital to the functioning of our society. We need energy to heat our homes, to produce food, for transport, and much more. But energy consumption poses two major challenges. First, our huge dependency on fossil fuels. Second, domestic energy production is decreasing.

GeoERA

Establishing the European Geological Surveys Research Area to deliver a Geological Service for Europe (GeoERA).

Geoheritage

Earth’s geological processes are happening around us all the time. The results are often distinctive geological sites (geosites) that can be unique, visually appealing or have scientific value.

Geophysics

Geophysics studies the Earth's interior using physical properties measured at or above its surface and produces mathematical models to predict those properties.

Marine Geology

About two-thirds of the Earth’s surface is covered by water. In line with this, Europe’s seas total about fifteen million square kilometres, fifty percent more than its land area.

Urban Geology

Geological and geotechnical information about the subsurface of cities are of paramount importance and of high socio-economic value for their development and the maintenance of critical infrastructure.

Water Resources

Groundwater, present almost every where beneath our feet, is by far (99%) the largest freshwater resource on earth. As rain falls, it recharge and continuously feeds, rivers, lakes, wetlands and coastal waters.