Land-cover-based indicator to assess the accessibility of resources used in the construction sector

The motivation for the current study is based on the observation that close to metropolitan areas, abiotic resources are becoming scarce and need to be imported and transported over long distances in order to be used in construction. The issue of local resource scarcity, with respect to resources used in the construction sector, is not adequately depicted in environmental impact assessment methods such as Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and despite the documented need by many researchers to evaluate resource availability on a regional rather than global scale, no cost-efficient, fast and reliable indicator has been proposed. Additionally, the existing indicators take into account only the issue of physical availability of a resource and normally neglect the impact of other parameters, including social or legislative issues. A resource can be physically available and yet the access to it may be prohibited. It is argued here that social and anthropogenic factors, such as the proximity to an urban area or the existence of a protected zone, can be a barrier to the authorization of quarry operation and expansion and that the accessibility to a resource is often threatened by competing land uses.