UK construction industry plastic waste increases 15 times faster than Europe
European Commission data suggest a huge disparity between British property developments compared with continental counterparts.
Based on analysis of statistics from the past 24 years, UK construction-related plastic waste has been growing by an average of 210% every two years, significantly outpacing mainland Europe.
Looking to the continent, when all EU member states are taken into account the bloc has seen the same waste stream grow by 14%.
However, there are huge differences between sectors. When all British industries are taken into account, commercial plastic waste has risen by just 4%. This is 50 times lower than the figure for construction.
The research stands as stark testimony to the shift we have witnessed anecdotally in recent years, with suppliers and manufacturers drawn toward cheap plastic materials that are not fit for purpose.
‘Contrary to the claims made by plastic manufacturers on the longevity of their products, construction plastics often perform poorly compared to traditional constructional materials, leading to breakages and failures that negate the immediate cost savings associated with plastics,’ said Oliver Lawton, co-founder of the Copper Sustainability Partnership [CuSP], which published the European Commission data.
‘At the end of a building’s life cycle, most plastic waste still isn’t recycled and is instead sent to a landfill, exported abroad or incinerated. Low recycling rates also necessitate new plastic products, leading to a linear cycle of production, use and waste,’ he continued.
Looking at specific materials, post-consumer polyvinyl chloride, the most common plastic used in construction, currently has a UK recycling rate of just 3%. Plastic composites, meanwhile, such multi-layer composite pipe, are often not recycled at all. This is despite becoming significantly more commonplace than 20 years ago. In comparison, steel, copper, and aluminium – the three most common construction metals – have recycling rates of at least 70%.
In the plumbing sector, we have seen newer products like MLCP – a type of composite pipe that physically cannot be recycled – pushed by manufacturers as a sustainable option for installers and homeowners when the opposite is true.
‘While most construction plastics are marketed as theoretically recyclable, in reality only traditional buildings with a long-standing history of recovery and recycling will be made of recycled material and go on to be recycled at the end of their life cycle,’ said Andrew Surtees, co-founder of CuSP and Head of Sales at Mueller Europe.
‘With the UK construction industry falling further behind in its net-zero commitments, phasing out plastics in favour of fully recyclable materials with proven sustainability credentials remains one of the biggest opportunities for sustainable growth in the sector,’ he added.
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Image: Tolu Olubode