Crossroads for construction products: CPR could help decarbonise them – or do nothing
The European Parliament has endorsed a revised EU Construction Products Regulation (CPR) that shifts action to the implementation phase instead of introducing mandatory requirements right away. The agreed law takes some timid steps forward, but without the comprehensive measures that are needed it is a far cry from the jump-start on decarbonisation that progressive voices have been calling for.
Construction products significantly damage our environment, with an annual carbon footprint of 250 million tonnes for the EU – equivalent to the electricity use of almost 500 million homes in a single year.
The EU’s revised Construction Products Regulation (CPR) is intended to bring the sector into check by lowering impacts that occur throughout a product’s lifecycle – from the extraction of materials to end of life [1].
With only small positive steps forward, the CPR voted today does not give the sector the environmental ambition it needs to make its contribution to our climate reduction targets. The regulation offers a menu of options that could help to decarbonise this highly polluting sector – but only if policymakers choose to set up the right processes. Unfortunately, that means uncertainty is the dish of the day.
The CPR shifts the burden to the implementation phase when it could have been dealt with in the law itself. Instead of mandating sustainability rules for construction products with broad, far-reaching measures, the CPR kicks the can down the road with measures that are not enough to have an immediate impact. This risky strategy jeopardises Europe’s climate neutrality targets.
For example, the CPR is missing a plan to implement ecodesign rules for construction products, which would include limits on their environmental impacts. This is particularly worrying for cement, a product with an enormous climate impact [2], which was omitted from the scope of ecodesign rules under the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR). As it is, only the CPR is left to push the worst-polluting cements off the market – and it may not be enough to do so effectively [3].
On the more encouraging side, disclosure of environmental information through Environmental Product Declarations will become mandatory. The EU will also see the development of new green public procurement (GPP) rules for construction products. Such rules could result in greener products using public spending on construction activities.
The CPR could help to decarbonise the European construction products sector, but only if it is properly implemented. A clear, transparent, and science-based process must set rules to ensure that products that do not harm the environment – especially for the most energy-intensive products, like cement and concrete. Limiting the impact of such materials is essential for Europe to achieve its climate neutrality targets.
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Federica Pozzi, Senior Programme Manager at ECOS – Environmental Coalition on Standards, said:
“The few improvements introduced into the CPR will not eliminate the negative impacts of construction products. For this law to align with the objectives of the Green Deal, policymakers must now guide the construction industry down an ambitious path during the implementation phase – years of extra work that a more ambitious CPR could have removed the need for.”
Notes to editors
[1] Impact assessment on the revised Construction Products Regulation: https://ec.europa.eu/docsroom/documents/49316
[2] Cement is responsible for up to 8% of global CO2 emissions. For more on this, refer to the Alliance for Low-Carbon Cement & Concrete (ALCCC), an industry platform working to make low-carbon cement and concrete the norm within the next decade: https://alliancelccc.com/
[3] Despite being a product with one of the highest climate impacts, cement was not included in the list of priority sectors in the EU Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR). Instead, it has been given until 2029 to take steps to decarbonise using tools like the CPR, after which the European Commission could step in if not enough has been done. This will very likely delay meaningful action.
[4] Joint letter from ECOS and the EBB alongside 21 other organisations, ‘Recommendations for an environmentally ambitious Construction Products Regulation (CPR)’: https://ecostandard.org/publications/joint-letter-recommendations-for-an-environmentally-ambitious-construction-products-regulation-cpr/
[5] ECOS press release on CPR final trilogue, December 2023: https://ecostandard.org/news_events/revised-eu-rules-for-construction-products-miss-the-mark-on-sustainability/
Contact
If you have questions, please contact me:
Alison Grace
Press & Communications Manager at ECOS
alison.grace@ecostandard.org
+32 493 19 22 59
ECOS – Environmental Coalition on Standards is an international NGO with a network of members and experts advocating for environmentally friendly technical standards, policies, and laws.
