Geophysicist David McInnes is concerned about the quantities of copper required to roll out the electrification of society

David McInnes believes the surging popularity of electric goods will put incredible strain on global copper supplies.

"It is going to require an awful amount of copper," he said.

Copper has a high level of electrical conductivity, and is used in motors, generators and for cables and wiring in nearly all household electric appliances.

Emerging technologies such as electric vehicles, solar panels and batteries all require large quantities of copper to run.

A 2022 report by S&P Global estimated global demand for copper would more than double by 2050 to an estimated 53 million metric tons - a figure "more than all the copper consumed in the world between 1900 and 2021," the report said.

That figure is on top of recycling copper currently in circulation.

Mr McInnes said copper was the second most recycled mineral in the world, with reports estimating anywhere from 60 to 80 per cent of the copper ever used is still being recycled in circulation today.

he said.

Mr McInnes works in mineral exploration, and admits the business has been profitable for him, however he is concerned by these estimated amount of minerals required, and what it means for the mining industry globally.

"You have to think about where you will get this copper from," he said. "It becomes an environmental issue.

"The earth is a closed resource.

"We need to think about how we use our resources."

Mr McInnes said Australia had "fantastic regulation" of the mining industry - something lacking from other countries around the world, some of which have high deposits of copper.

"What will that mean for how it is mined in those places?" he said.

Mr McInnes said while new technologies such as electric vehicles were a "viable alternative", they could cause further problems into the future.

"We have to be thinking about what will happen in five, 10 years time," he said.

"We have to think about the full cycle."

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Mr McInnes believes EV's are an expensive alternative.

"This solution is going to be more expensive, and if it wasn't then it already would have happened," he said.

He thinks society needs to rethink how they do transport, with more public transport and more vehicle sharing alternatives available to more people.

"Our current decisions have significant implications on the future," he said.