Serving you better: Cutting Emissions in Property Repairs Through the Circular Economy
There should be no doubt about the construction industry’s sizeable contribution to global waste and emissions. As a sector responsible for property repairs following an insurance claim, the insurance market has an important part to play in cutting emissions by encouraging better practices to mitigate waste when any form of building repair work is undertaken. In essence, the market needs to encourage circularity – in its simplest form, the aim is to reduce waste of new materials and reuse or recycle the old to cut the energy we use.
What a waste
Estimates show half of the world’s extracted raw materials go into the world’s built environment. Construction creates a third of the world’s overall waste and at least 40% of the world’s carbon dioxide. And while it is hard to be exact, it is estimated that as much as 30% of the world’s total building materials delivered to site is wasted.
Reports from the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA) highlight the extent of the waste problem in the UK. In 2014, the U.K. produced 202.8 million tonnes of waste, with 59% attributed to the Construction, Demolition and Excavation (CDE) industry. Furthermore, in the U.K., 75% of construction waste that could be recycled or repurposed goes to landfill.
Moving from a Linear to Circular Economy
The traditional linear economic model is based on a take, make, consume and throw away pattern that relies on large quantities of cheap, easily accessible materials and energy. The circular economy model involves sharing, leasing, reusing, repairing, refurbishing and recycling existing materials and products as well as possible to extend the life cycle of products to reduce waste to a minimum.
This circular approach offers a framework to guide insurance providers and their subcontractors towards more sustainable practices. By adopting circular practices, the insurance market can target waste reduction during property repairs and improve recycling of unavoidable waste on site, with the end goal of cutting CO2 emissions.
Overcoming the cost barrier
Cost is one of the biggest hurdles insurance providers must address in supporting the circular economy. Already construction and repairs have seen prices for materials and labour rise and this is not slowing down. Projections across the next five years expect building costs to increase by 15%. On top of that, transitions to different materials can often prove costly themselves.
New machinery or practices can take time to implement and at first, can appear to be exacerbating the cost issue, not helping it. And the perceived high cost of recycling also depends on the material being recycled - a good deal of the cost comes from separating the different materials, especially when taking them from a demolished building.
But what was first viewed as a stumbling block can now be seen as an opportunity. Reusing and recycling materials in property repairs has multiple benefits. It offers a practical and sustainable approach to managing claims costs, enhancing resilience, and aligning with environmental objectives. Furthermore, by integrating recycled content into building repairs, insurers can demonstrate leadership in sustainability while realising financial benefits and supporting the transition to a circular economy.
The Materials at Work
So what are the big culprits when trying to reduce waste in property repairs? Top of the list is plasterboard or gypsum board. As a result of overordering, poor storage, unsuitable transport methods and its cheap cost, plasterboard has become one of the most wasted products in building repairs. More than 2.5 million tonnes are used in U.K. construction each year but the amount wasted is thought to be roughly 1 million tonnes per year.
A major consideration when using this resource is its disposal. Gypsum produces hydrogen sulphide under anaerobic conditions and therefore must go to a monofil landfill, not a normal one. It can, however, be recycled but due to the low-cost/low-value nature of this resource, many organisations do not take up this option.
Reducing waste comes down to better design to reduce off-cuts, ordering the right amount, better storage and transportation and recycling through a reputable company. Even ensuring any off-cuts are kept dry is supporting circularity because dry plasterboard is easier and more economical to reprocess.
In contrast, copper has the longest recycling history of any known material, being infinitely recyclable without losing any of its properties.
The widespread application of this material is just as important as its reusability. From plumbing to wiring to roof sheeting, they all use and reuse copper. Construction and plumbing are already benefiting from using copper in the circular economy and as recycling techniques improve, they will see a further reduction in waste and need for mines.
Of course there are many more materials used in property repairs and a longer list of these and their recycling/reuse opportunities can be found here: https://www.woodgate-clark.co.uk/sites/default/files/media/files/woodgate-and-clark-the-circular-economy-2024-nick-turner.pdf
Change is not going to happen overnight but adopting circular approaches will help us to offer more sustainable solutions, securing the future of the industry and improving the health of our planet.
[i] Source - Yeheyis M., Hewage K., Alam M.S., Eskicioglu C., Sadiq R. An overview of construction and demolition waste management in Canada: A lifecycle analysis approach to sustainability.
[ii] https://bcis.co.uk/news/bcis-construction-industry-forecast/