Can AI Save the Planet From Us?
- By Lachlan Colquhoun
- August 08, 2022
Among all the commentary about the new Australian Government passing critical legislation on carbon emissions last week was a barely covered release from mining process optimization company Plotlogic.
It might seem counterintuitive for a mining company to welcome legislation that has the potential to limit the activity of the resources industry, but Plotlogic had a different point. The company is more a solutions provider than a miner, providing LIDAR and hyperspectral imaging technology with advanced machine learning to deliver a highly accurate understanding of ore bodies.
One side of Plotlogic’s perspective might be driven by self-interest. The company’s technology is used by companies seeking to mine many metals needed for the new economy, such as nickel, copper, tungsten, lithium, and rare earths.
The other point made by Plotlogic founder Dr. Andrew Job is around sustainability and that using exponential technologies such as AI and machine learning can help make mining more efficient.
Plotlogic’s OreSense technology, he says, was developed in the belief that mining “should be able to generate the resources society needs without harming the environment.”
Like “swapping a hacksaw for a scalpel,” OreSense is designed to facilitate “selective mining” where ore deposits are extracted more precisely, and waste material and greenhouse gas use are minimized.
The Brisbane-based startup’s technology allows miners to see the exact mineral composition of the core and blasthole samples and is also being used in the rehabilitation of coal mines.
“Our goal is committed to supporting its customers mine more selectively and sustainably, helping unlock the minerals needed for the net zero future,” said Job.
The good news is that Plotlogic is not alone. Several other companies in the mining industry are also using AI not only to find deposits and map them more precisely but to mine them sustainably.
Wider applications
It is a story that is not only confined to mining. Among all the use cases for AI and ML, the drive for sustainability is occurring across a range of industries, from farming to computing to promoting biodiversity.
Google is using an AI model, for example, which reduces the energy load of data centers and reduces the cost of cooling by 40%. Likewise, IBM is using AI for improved weather forecasting, making predictions 30% more accurate.
AI is driving smarter energy grids, smart transport, improved navigation, and helping de-congest global cities. It can monitor invasive species and help locate them for liquidation, while anti-poaching groups have used predictive software to plan patrol routes.
“Our goal is committed to supporting its customers mine more selectively and sustainably, helping unlock the minerals needed for the net zero future”
In the ocean, AI can track illegal fishing, while AI-powered robots can monitor pollution levels and water quality.
It can also assist in manufacturing. Around 17 billion purchased items are returned globally due to product defects or customer satisfaction, equal to about 4.7 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emitted each year. AI systems can reduce the percentage of defective manufactured goods, and even a 10% reduction in the number of defective items would save enough energy to power around 5700 homes annually.
The Boston Consulting Group has estimated that in 2030, using AI for climate control could help reduce between 2.6 to 5.3 gigatons of greenhouse gas emission or 5 to 10% of the total. It could also provide USD1 trillion to USD3 trillion in value added when applied to corporate sustainability generally.
Good and bad
Of course, it is a double-edged sword, and AI can also hurt sustainability goals. A 2021 study published in Nature Communications tracked the 17 Sustainable Development Goals defined by the United Nations and looked at both the upside and downside of AI’s impact on sustainability.
On environmental targets, for example, the assessment was that while AI enabled 93% of the targets, it could also be hampering 30%. AI enabled and hampered some targets, hence the figure adding to more than 100%.
In terms of economic targets, 70% were enhanced by AI while 33% were inhibited, while in the broader area of society, AI advanced 82% of the goals while hindering 38%.
The message is that AI can have a positive impact if it is harnessed in the cause of sustainability.
While it can be a force for destruction, when used increasingly in warfare, as seen in Ukraine, AI can also be enlisted to save the planet.
It is just a question of applications and ethics, and we need to leave that to humans.
Lachlan Colquhoun is the Australia and New Zealand correspondent for CDOTrends and the editor of NextGen Connectivity. His fascination is with how businesses are reinventing themselves through digital technology and collaborate with others to become completely new organizations. You can reach him at [email protected].
Image credit: iStockphoto/Natali_Mis