The Rise and Fall of British Blast Furnaces: The Difficulties of Green Transformation in the Post-Industrial Steel Industry
01-13-2026
International Social Science Journal (Chinese Edition)
No.2, 2025
The Rise and Fall of British Blast Furnaces: The Difficulties of Green Transformation in the Post-Industrial Steel Industry
(Abstract)
Liu Qi
The steel industry is a key driver of industrialization in human society, but it is also a major source of greenhouse gas emissions. With the advent of the post-industrial era, how to promote the green and low-carbon transformation of the steel industry will not only determine the future of sustainable development in the steel industry, but will also profoundly influence the reconstruction of the relationship between human society and the nature. In April 2025, two blast furnaces in Scunthorpe, England, faced the risk of closure, which directly affected the UK’s primary steel production capacity and unemployment issues. Looking back on the development and green practices of the British steel industry over the past 40 years, there are important lessons to be learned for the green and low-carbon transformation of China’s steel industry. Persistent economic pressures, unclear policy regulations, and limited government support are key reasons why the UK steel industry has struggled to make significant progress in its transition to a green and low-carbon model. In the post-industrial era, it is necessary to increase financial investment and institutional support for green technologies in the steel industry, properly balance the relationship between production efficiency, green and low-carbon development, and employee welfare, and form a cooperative and mutually beneficial industrial chain among upstream and downstream enterprises to promote the green and low-carbon transformation of the steel industry.