North Korea Makes Millions Selling Sand: CNN

North Korea is under UN sanctions for its nuclear-weapon programs, yet researchers with the Center for Advanced Defense Studies noticed heavy ship traffic near Haeju. North Korea typically evades sanctions by transferring commodities on the high seas. Relying on satellite imagery, the researchers determined more than 250 ships – lacking required International Maritime Organization identifiers – have dredged, transported and traded North Korea’s ocean sand, a violation of international law. Sand is an essential ingredient for concrete, glass and other features of infrastructure. One report suggests that the country sent more than a million tons of sand since May 2019, most going to China. “Ship-to-ship transfers usually involve vessels registered to small countries where regulation is cheap and oversight is lax – boats flying a so-called flag of convenience,” reports Joshua Berlinger for CNN. “Humanity consumes about 50 billion tonnes of sand per year — more than any other natural resource on the planet except for water.” He explains river sand is best and ocean sand must washed and desalinated before use in infrastructure. China cracks down on illegal sand mining within its borders and denies violating sanctions. – YaleGlobal