MPA UK Concrete welcomes GCCA Climate Ambition

02/09/2020

MPA UK Concrete, the group representing the UK concrete industry, has welcomed the Global Cement and Concrete Association’s ‘Climate Ambition Statement’ and the global concrete and cement industry’s commitment to deliver carbon neutral concrete by 2050.

Chris Leese, director of UK Concrete commented: “Cement and concrete are essential to delivering a net zero economy and the GCCA’s ambition statement reflect the opportunity and challenge. The UK concrete industry is currently finalising an ambitious UK industry roadmap to go beyond net zero and become net negative, removing more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere than we emit each year.   

“Achieving net zero will require the wholesale decarbonisation of all aspects of concrete and cement production, supply and use. The concrete and cement industry as one sector alone cannot deliver net zero. We will only be able to achieve our net zero and net negative emissions goals with concerted support from Government and the wider construction, energy and transportation sectors.

“Importantly, we believe that net zero should be achieved by reducing emissions from the construction materials manufactured in the UK rather than by simply replacing these with imports and moving the problem abroad. Our roadmap will aim to retain jobs and economic value in the UK whilst ensuring that the UK takes responsibility for the emissions it creates.”

UK concrete and cement account for 1.5% of UK carbon dioxide emissions and are five times lower than the global average where cement and concrete account for 7% of emissions.

The UK concrete and cement roadmap will be published during autumn 2020.  

For more information please visit, https://gccassociation.org/climate-ambition/