How can we reduce plastics in construction?
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Every year, the UK consumes over five million tonnes of plastic, and the construction industry accounts for nearly a quarter of that.
Whilst fossil fuels deplete and our plastic waste piles up, the construction industry needs to dramatically reduce its reliance on plastics. James Ayres, co-founder and operations director, Lime Green Products Ltd, explores how we can minimise plastics in construction and makes his predictions for its future within the industry.
Over recent years, the adverse impacts of plastic waste on our environment has been frequently discussed. As a result, there has been a global effort to reduce the use of single-use plastics and increase the use of bioplastics, recycled plastics and recyclable plastics. This has led to an environmental spotlight being placed on the UK construction industry, which creates an astonishing 50,000 tonnes of plastic waste each year. The majority of this waste is incinerated, emitting toxic fumes into the environment, and the remaining 40% is sent to landfill as it cannot be recycled.
This shocking amount of plastic waste, and its associated negative environmental impact, make it both urgent and crucial for the construction industry to put measures into place to reduce its plastic consumption.
Existing targets and guidance
In 2018, the UK government introduced A Green Future: Our 25 Year Plan to Improve the Environment, a policy which aims to eliminate all avoidable plastic waste by 2042. The plans involve extending supplier responsibility, potential bans on certain materials, additional research and development, and greater recycling efforts.
The Resources and Waste Strategy, published in 2018, is the blueprint for removing all avoidable plastic waste over a 25 year period.
Reducing plastic use
1. Design with the circular economy in mind – during the design process, think about how materials will be disposed of at the end of their lifecycle. This may involve thinking about waste from packaging. It could also include considering how building materials that include plastic will be disposed of once they come to the end of their lifecycle in years to come. For example, petroleum based insulation systems, such as polyurethane foam products, are very difficult to dispose of. However, natural insulation systems, such as those comprising wood fibre and lime render have much simpler and greener end of life disposal options.
2. Use alternatives to plastics – wherever possible, try to use healthy and sustainable materials that can be easily disposed of. This may include using healthy materials in the construction itself, such as lime, wood fibre or wood. For packaging, this could involve choosing a product which is packaged in recycled or recyclable materials, rather than single-use plastic.
3. Dispose of waste well – waste is unavoidable on any building site. However, how that waste is disposed of can either support or damage the environment. Try to recycle anything that can be recycled. If you’re unsure, contact suppliers to find out whether materials can be recycled or not, and they may even be willing to collect any waste to dispose of it themselves. If materials can’t be recycled, you can send them to a licensed waste management contractor, as they will know the safest method for disposing of any unrecyclable waste. You could even develop a waste management plan, which will not only reduce your environmental impact, but it could result in substantial cost savings too.
The benefits of reducing plastic use
1. Natural alternatives are healthy in use and disposal – natural alternatives to plastic can be simply disposed of, and some can even naturally biodegrade overtime. Natural alternatives are made up of safe and healthy polymers, meaning they don’t emit toxic fumes into our atmosphere throughout use or disposal.
2. Natural alternatives have the same strength as plastics – the easy disposal of natural materials does not deplete their strength, as many benefit from the same rigidity and weather-resistance as traditional plastics.
3. Protect our fossil fuel supplies – plastics use fossil fuels, which are being used up at an alarming rate. By using alternatives to plastics, we can minimise our fossil fuel consumption.
4. Reduce toxic fumes in our atmosphere – with many plastics being incinerated at the end of their lifecycle, decreasing plastic waste in construction can help to minimise the amount of toxic fumes released into our atmosphere.
5. Minimise plastic waste in our landfills – disposing of plastics safely or recycling them can minimise the amount of the material that is left in our landfills.
The future of plastics
· Creation of hybrid materials – it may not be possible to entirely remove plastics in construction, however we may see the emergence of hybrid materials, made up of around 95%+ natural materials and a small quantity of plastic polymers.
· Healthy plastics will find their place in construction – it’s likely that plastics will continue to be developed so they are sustainable and healthy for use in construction. This could include the advancement of plastics so they are 100% recyclable, or the more common use of regenerated plastics for alternative uses, such as plastic roads or plastic concrete.
· Emergence of more bioplastics – the bioplastics industry is continuing to develop, with the material frequently being found in modern packaging. These plastics contribute to lower greenhouse gas emissions and decrease demand for fossil fuel consumption. It’s likely that the construction industry will create alternative bioplastics or adopt their use for the packaging of construction materials.
For more information about natural alternatives to plastic in construction, visit http://bit.ly/limegreenproductsltd or call 01952 728 611.
