The Concrete Sustainability Council is an industry organization and standards body focused on decreasing the environmental impact of cement, concrete, and aggregate.[1][2] The group was originally launched by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development as the Concrete Sustainability Initiative in 2013.[3][4][5] The project has been managed by the Global Cement and Concrete Association since 2019.[6]
The initiative's initial goal was to establish a certification system for responsibly sourced concrete and its supply chain. The initiative launched the CSC certification system,[7][8] which is an industry certification that can contribute to LEED certification related to materials.[9] The process evaluates both supply chain and process used for the production of concrete, and other Environmental and Social consequences.[10] Parts of the certificate are optional, such as the CO2 certification -- so not all CSC certified products are low carbon.[11] The certificate is administered by "regional system operators" such as German Ready-Mixed Concrete Association in Germany.[12][13] As of 2021, 485 concrete industry organizations had the certification.[citation needed]
The certificate comes in four levels Platinum, Gold, Silver and Bronze -- with platinum complying with more of the certification requirements.[2] The standards for cement, aggregate and concrete are different.[2]The certification allows designers and architects to better understand the lifecycle and impact of concrete in their construction projects.[12] Cement plants that are retrofitting or trying to become more sustainable, can use the standard to redesign their processes.[citation needed]
Beyond certification, the initiative also supports research for the cement industry, such as a technology roadmap of the cement industry with the IEA.[14]
References
edit- ^ "Cement Sustainability Initiative (CSI)". World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD). Retrieved 2024-04-22.
- ^ a b c "Weighting and Certification Levels – Concrete Sustainability Council". Retrieved 2024-04-22.
- ^ "Cement Sustainability Initiative (CSI)". World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD). Retrieved 2024-04-22.
- ^ "Cement Sustainability Initiative, The | Department of Economic and Social Affairs". sdgs.un.org. Retrieved 2024-04-22.
- ^ Peng, Tien. "PRODUCT TRANSPARENCY: NORTH AMERICAN EXPERIENCES TOWARDS EPDS, CSRS AND HPDS FOR CONCRETE" (PDF).
{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires|journal=(help) - ^ "Cement Sustainability Initiative". World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD). Retrieved 2024-04-22.
- ^ "About us – Concrete Sustainability Council". Retrieved 2024-04-22.
- ^ "CSC sustainability certificate – version 2.0 starts - Concrete Plant Precast Technology". www.bft-international.com. Retrieved 2024-04-22.
- ^ "Social Equity within the Supply Chain | U.S. Green Building Council". www.usgbc.org. Retrieved 2024-04-22.
- ^ Barbhuiya, Salim; Kanavaris, Fragkoulis; Das, Bibhuti Bhusan; Idrees, Maria (2024). "Decarbonising cement and concrete production: Strategies, challenges and pathways for sustainable development". Journal of Building Engineering. 86: 108861. doi:10.1016/j.jobe.2024.108861. ISSN 2352-7102.
- ^ Müller, Christoph (November 2023). "How standards support sustainability of cement and concrete in Europe". Cement and Concrete Research. 173: 107288. doi:10.1016/j.cemconres.2023.107288. ISSN 0008-8846.
- ^ a b Minson, Andrew John (2024). "Carbon Reduction in Concrete Design and Construction". In Banthia, Nemkumar; Soleimani-Dashtaki, Salman; Mindess, Sidney (eds.). Smart & Sustainable Infrastructure: Building a Greener Tomorrow. RILEM Bookseries. Vol. 48. Cham: Springer Nature Switzerland. pp. 440–445. doi:10.1007/978-3-031-53389-1_41. ISBN 978-3-031-53389-1.
- ^ GmbH, DGNB. "Label CSC". DGNB GmbH. Retrieved 2024-04-22.
- ^ "Cement technology roadmap plots path to cutting CO2 emissions 24% by 2050 - News". IEA. 2018-04-06. Retrieved 2024-04-22.