Cement Industry Makes New CO2 Pledge

The global concrete and cement manufacturing industry has agreed to take on a new target for reducing carbon emissions, with a further 25 per cent reduction in the greenhouse gas by 2030.

It will be part of the Global Cement and Concrete Association (GCCA) aim of cutting emissions to the extent that the industry becomes carbon neutral by 2050. The significance of the announcement is that it involves major forms from all over the world, including countries with disappointing recent environmental performance like the US and China.

The target is worth the equivalent in emissions reductions of 15 billion flights from New York to Paris.

It is just the latest of a number of pledges being made by the construction sector to be greener in all its operations, from environmental impacts to the level of embedded CO2 in buildings. Cement is a key factor in this, as it makes up seven per cent of annual emissions.

GCCA chief executive Thomas Guillot said: “We now need governments around the world to work with us and use their huge procurement power to advocate for low carbon concrete in their infrastructure and housing needs.”

The use of quick drying screed in London may help in its own way to cut carbon emissions, especially when it is used in conjunction with district heating and underfloor heating systems.

Using renewable sources of energy such as ground source heat pumps or biogas from recycled waste, these can help provide extra heating to homes and mean they will need to burn less energy using traditional sources of energy, therefore reducing emissions that way as well.

This can also be useful in helping cut energy bills, an important consideration at a time when the UK and other countries in Europe are suffering from rising fuel bills as the cost of wholesale gas soars.