The first action of the new strategy was the evolution of the previous Resource Efficiency Action Plan (REAP), which established zero waste to landfill and resource efficient processes for the sector, into a full Circular Economy Action Plan (CEAP). The CEAP will establish ambitious circular economy targets, ensuring alignment with wider industry efforts and drivers such as BREEAM, change to the Construction Product Regulation and EU Taxonomy.
The MPA circular economy task group, collaborating with sustainability consultants Net Positive Solutions conducted extensive stakeholder engagement to draft an initial set of metrics and targets designed to drive the sector towards more circular practices. These metrics and targets will form an important part of the dynamic and evolving initiative, with ongoing industry consultation to ensure the plan's targets are ambitious yet practical.
Vision Statements for the CEAP
The CEAP is structured around the lifecycle stages of concrete (Manufacturing, Logistic and packaging, Design for use and reuse, Construction process and Demolition) and the various MPA segments (Cement; Ready-Mix Concrete; Masonry; Precast Concrete; Aggregates). Key areas of focus include:
- Increasing the use of recycled and secondary aggregates
- Expanding the use of Supplementary Cementitious Materials (SCM).
- Achieving zero waste to landfill in ready-mix concrete plants
- Accelerating the adoption of digital product passports.
- Designing for durability, ease of maintenance, and resource efficiency
- Minimising waste through digital tracking and local sourcing of materials
- Enhancing reuse potential in concrete design.
- Reducing avoidable waste through contractor collaboration.
- Establishing take-back schemes and improving end-of-life recycling