European Parliament Committee decides not to regulate 250 million tonnes of CO2 emitted by the construction sector – backpedaling on EU promise to “make sustainable products the norm”
The European Parliament's IMCO Committee has chosen not to slash the environmental impacts of construction products under the Construction Products Regulation (CPR). The report was approved with a large majority of MEPs, a decision that will have negative impacts on the environment for decades to come – if adopted in plenary. MEPs have agreed to grant special treatment to construction products, unlike textiles, electronics, or plastics, which are all on the path to becoming sustainable by default.
Construction products, such as cement, bricks, or insulation, are responsible for 250 million tonnes of CO2 emission annually – equivalent to flying around the world 38 million times. The sector uses 50% of all extracted materials, while generating 30% of our waste.
By failing to control this wild west of environmental impacts in the Construction Products Regulation, the European Parliament has missed a unique opportunity to reduce the sector’s damaging impact on our climate and environment [1].
Reliance on industry self-regulation through standards simply does not work. Policymakers must intervene to set environmentally ambitious, binding minimum requirements that are subject to the scrutiny of the EU institutions, stakeholders, and consumers [2].
It is not too late. In the Plenary foreseen for July, it is imperative that MEPs show that they understand the urgency of the climate crisis and strike down the very environmentally damaging approach taken by the IMCO rapporteur Mr Doleschal.
Federica Pozzi, Programme Manager at ECOS – Environmental Coalition on Standards, said:
“The European Parliament has chosen the ineffective status quo, ignoring the enormous environmental footprint of the construction sector. Being selective about which products we make sustainable might suit powerful lobbies, but it is a massive loss for the environment, EU competitiveness, innovation, and consumers. The European Parliament must do better in July, and finally address the construction sector’s poor environmental performance.”
ENDS
Note to editors:
[1] Together with 23 organisations, ECOS asked EU policy makers for a future-fit CPR, with stringent environmental regulation imposing limits to the environmental footprints of construction products.
[2] 5 billion tonnes of CO2 have been emitted by the construction sector since the publication of the first CPR, because of the industry’s unwillingness to move forward with sustainability requirements in standards. Today’s report strengthens the CPR’s reliance on a standardisation system failing to deliver on the environmental impact of the construction sector.
Contact:
If you have questions, please contact me:
Alison Grace
Press & Communications Manager at ECOS
alison.grace@ecostandard.org
+32 493 19 22 59
