The Earth Is Slowly Running Out of Usable Sand

Tom Scott visited a beach in Cape May, New Jersey in his series Things You Might Not Know to explain that the Earth is running out of usable sand. Scott spoke with Steve Rochette of the United States Army Corps of Engineers about the process of dredging sand from offshore onto beaches, and why despite deserts full of sand around the world, sand is not a renewable resource.

I never thought of sand as a non-renewable resource, but there’s only a limited supply: and to make things worse, it keeps getting washed into the sea. At Cape May, New Jersey, the US Army Corps of Engineers have just finished rebuilding a beach: here’s why.