"Dune and desert sand cannot be used in construction because the sand grains are too fine and round. Thus, desert countries may have to import sand anyway."

"Desert sand is not suitable for concrete production. The fine round granules of desert sand do not adhere to one another or permit compaction."

"The Palm Jumeirah artificial island in the UAE consumed 94 million cubic metres of marine sand, dredged from specific locations in the Persian Gulf where the grain size was suitable, and even that supply could not be drawn from the surrounding desert."

"Nach einer Auswertung von Sandproben aus der Sahara und von der Arabischen Halbinsel mitgeteilt, ist Wüstensand dafür 'offenkundig zu fein'."

"Aus diesem Feinsand lasse sich hochfester Beton, wie er etwa für Wolkenkratzer in Dubai benötigt wird, nicht herstellen."

"Yet sand mining is the world’s largest extraction industry because sand is a main ingredient in concrete, and the global construction industry has been soaring for decades. Every year the world uses up to 50 billion metric tons of sand, according to a United Nations Environment Program report."

"Companies large and small dredge up sand from waterways and the ocean floor and transport it to wholesalers, construction firms and retailers. Even the legal sand trade is hard to track."

"The sand loaded onto the Basle Express was not just any kind, but silica, highly sought after because it is used for making electronics, glass and metals."

"Sand is the foundation of human construction and a fundamental ingredient in concrete, asphalt, glass and other building materials."

"But sand, like other natural resources, is limited and its ungoverned extraction is driving erosion, flooding, the salination of aquifers and the collapse of coastal defences."

"The 50 billion tonnes of sand thought to be extracted for construction every year is enough to build a nine-storey wall around the planet."

"Increasing demand for sand, which saw a three-fold growth over 20 years, had caused river pollution and flooding, while also shrinking aquifers and deepening droughts."