Among natural resources, sand has one of the fastest-rising prices. And it is far from being abundant. What’s more, the illegal trade in sand grains can be fatally dangerous.

Until now, lying on a mound of sand has been synonymous with summer relaxation, but soon it will become a luxury. While the prices of oil and gas are falling, the value of sand on global markets has been rising for several decades, and has jumped sharply since the start of the 21st century. This phenomenon has been overlooked, but is dramatic. Those environmentalists who specialize in the issue of sand talk of a silent catastrophe, drowned out by the entirely justifiable alarm over plastic pollution in the oceans and the scarcity of fresh water. Contrary to the naïve belief that the Earth has an unlimited supply of this common and seemingly ubiquitous raw material, we have less and less sand, and are consuming it ever more voraciously.

By the end of this century, the majority of beaches in California will have disappeared and the idyllic beaches in Indonesia will be gone; the sandy terrains of Goa and Kerala are also at risk. But this is not because of rising sea levels. Well before our favourite postcard scenes are consumed by the waves, they could be stolen and… ground into concrete.

The foundation of civilization

Although none of us buy it personally in shops or markets, we are all dependent on this raw material that we consume in gigantic quantities. The third most intensively used natural resource after water and air, it is found in many everyday goods: toothpaste, glass, electronic devices such as smartphones and computers, microchips, breast implants… It