‘More circular use of aggregates pays off’
If the circular use of aggregates were to be increased from 7 to 20 percent, this could yield annual savings of €6 billion in Europe alone and 546 million tonnes of annually produced aggregates such as sand, gravel, crushed stone and other similar minerals.
Each year, Europe produces 4.2 billion tonnes of aggregates, but only seven percent of them are currently circular. In the new Urban Insight report ‘Circular materials in infrastructure – The road to a decarbonised future’, Sweco shows that twenty percent is achievable and delivers enormous benefits. The costs and climate impact are reduced, the landscape is less affected because fewer quarries are needed, fewer (scarce) natural resources need to be used, less transport is needed and there is less pollution and CO2 emissions.