I recently saw an article hailing the return of the airship. Said airship will provide a luxurious and sustainable alternative to short-haul flights, cutting flying’s carbon dioxide emissions by 90 per cent. Yes, you are quite correct – there is a catch.

In 1937, a hydrogen-filled airship ignited and caused 35 fatalities: the Hindenburg Disaster marked the end of the airship era. To bring airships back in the 21st century, operators would have to lose the hydrogen for another lighter-than-air technology.  

An elementary problem

That alternative is helium. As well as being lighter than air, helium can liquefy at extremely low temperatures (-268.9°C), a unique property that makes it a central component to our modern existence. Without it, we could not cool the superconducting magnets necessary for MRI scanners, we could not manufacture fibre optic cables and we could not conduct an immense amount of scientific research.

Despite our heavy reliance upon it, helium is incredibly rare on Earth. It is also the only element on the planet that is completely non-renewable. Once it is allowed to escape, it keeps rising and rising, eventually escaping our atmosphere entirely and disappearing off into the infinite cosmos beyond.

Knowing what we all now know about helium, let us take another look at the airship idea. That idea is taking one element and using it to solve the big problem of the current era. That is admirable in one respect. The climate crisis is here and aviation is a major contributor to that, both historically and going forwards. Something must be done to remedy it.

Now consider the world of the future that lacks a key element to which a huge amount of technology owes its existence. Also consider that the world has no realistic means of recovering or regenerating that element and you will realise we are sleepwalking into another astronomical problem.

Considering more than carbon

Helium is not the only element being sacrificed in the pursuit of lower carbon. Lithium-ion batteries for EVs and storage are also rapidly increasing the demand for minerals such as cobalt, manganese and nickel. The Royal Society of Chemistry has previously estimated that demand for all of these elements will give less than 100 years of supply. That is an estimate based on previous rates of extraction which are already increasing rapidly.

Of course, the case of helium is partially different to those of cobalt, manganese and nickel. For these metals, there is some consolation in the fact that they are not truly lost like helium. They are instead spread throughout our environment in low concentrations as waste streams. The celebrity status of batteries and EVs means such elements are already coming to be revered and efforts are being made to preserve them and eliminate waste streams via recycling. In the meantime, the discovery of new deposits or entirely new means of obtaining the minerals continues, abating the rate at which we consume our reserves of these elements.

Addressing the real problem

The fundamental cause of our problems, whether they be the very real crises of the present or the hypothetical problems of the future, is over-consumption. If we continue to apply the same short-term, linear economic principles that have seen us deplete fossil fuel resources to such detrimental effect, we will only repeat our past errors. Instead, a long-term, circular view should be taken in all scenarios, not just in the consideration of waste and end-of-life products, but also in the design, creation and manufacturing of new entities.

With climate change some damage is now unavoidable but we have been given an opportunity to change and recover. This should not simply be a case of consuming one resource instead of another, but rather a matter of overhauling some of our most fundamental behaviours.

It is a daunting task, but can we honestly convince ourselves that a short-haul flight today is worth sacrificing a life-changing MRI scan tomorrow? Will we really forego major scientific advancements for the sake of a few birthday balloons?

Further information

Contact Joe Lloyd

Contact Savills Energy & Sustainability