A dataset on metal-related production activities and their socio-environmental impacts in Canada

TL;DR

The MetalliCan dataset provides detailed information on metal production activities in Canada and their environmental and social impacts.

Contribution

MetalliCan is a novel, high-resolution dataset integrating data from 23 sources and over 150 reports for sustainability impact analysis.

Findings

MetalliCan includes data on 48 commodities and 270 sites, covering environmental and social dimensions.

The dataset supports industrial ecology research like life-cycle assessment and material flow analysis.

It ensures traceability and interoperability through a systematic integration of heterogeneous data sources.

Abstract

Metal-related production activities are essential to the low-carbon energy transition but can generate significant social and environmental impacts that influence project success and public acceptance. The MetalliCan dataset compiles and structures data from 23 open datasets and over 150 reports from more than 40 companies in metal-related sectors, offering a high-resolution, site-specific foundation for sustainability impact analysis in Canada. It was constructed following a systematic and reproducible procedure to integrate heterogeneous data sources at the finest granularity possible and ensure traceability and interoperability. MetalliCan covers 48 commodities and 270 domestic sites including active mines, smelters and refineries, as well as advanced projects. It contains information on environmental dimensions-e.g. greenhouse gases, pollutants, water, land, material use and waste-and social dimensions-e.g. affected population, conflicts, protected lands, future water risk and climate conditions. The code and dataset are openly accessible and can be exploited for industrial ecology research, such as life-cycle assessment, material flow analysis and environmental-extended input-output, as well as criticality, social and prospective studies.

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