Sustainable Consumption and Production

Brussels 16/07/08 – CEMBUREAU, the European Cement Association, supports, in principle, the objectives of the package on sustainable consumption and production launched today by the European Commission, in particular the aim to improve the overall environmental performance of products throughout their whole life-cycle.  However, for construction this ambition appears to be limited as it addresses construction products individually, rather than buildings as a whole.  

When purchasing a car or washing machine it is the environmental performance of the final product over its whole life-cycle which counts.  Yet, in the case of construction, it is assumed that measuring the environmental performance of individual construction products rather than of the end-use product (such as a building) will add up to improved design and construction in the built environment.   

Passive Housing’ is a clear example of how a product, in this case concrete, can contribute to society’s need for sustainable construction when one takes into account whole life-cycle savings.  Concrete has a high thermal mass meaning that it is able to store and later release heat in winter and coolness in summer.  This can:

• reduce heating energy consumption by 2 – 15%, with a typical saving in North European climate conditions of 10% when comparing light and heavyweight buildings and
• reduce energy use for cooling by up to 50%, when combined with natural ventilation*.

Such savings provide significant energy reduction and other environmental and economic benefits over a building’s lifetime.  

In addition, the package only addresses environmental performance and omits the social and economic dimension of sustainable development.  For example, concrete its made from locally sourced materials, boosting the local economy, it ensures a good return on investment as it provides durable, long life solutions, and it also has inherent acoustic, fire and vibrational characteristics, improving our quality of life, without forgetting the hospitals, schools, houses, roads, dams etc which form an important part of our daily life.  

CEMBUREAU recommends attention be paid to developing an ‘integrated strategy for sustainable construction’ to complement the progress on Sustainable Consumption and Production and which takes into account the whole life-cycle of the end-use product i.e. the building or construction works.  

CONTACT

Jessica JOHNSON, Head of Communications
Tel.: + 32 2 234 10 11 
Fax : + 32 2 230 47 20
aj.johnson@cembureau.eu
www.cembureau.eu