Are construction materials in Sweden traceable?

Journalists Åfreds, Nilsson and Bennewitz showcase that it is often impossible to gather information pertaining to commonly used construction materials in an article in Byggindustrin. This covers information on material origins and content, working conditions in the manufacturing process, socio-environmental impacts and so on. ℹ️

Given the impending obligations to report under the CSRD and potentially the CSDDD, this will no longer be acceptable, however, as of right now, the industry has a long way to go. 🚥

In their research experiment, the three journalists have chosen several ongoing construction projects in Sweden and followed their value chains to the primary source of materials used – the same thing that we do when performing a life cycle assessment LCA. The research took several months and spanned across 32 supply chains.

Unsurprisingly, they ran into several dead ends. 🛑

The information was unavailable due to several reasons: corporate confidentiality, trade secrets, lack of contacts responsible or a lack of a response altogether. Sounds familiar?

Out of 32 construction materials inspected, there were no cases where a complete set of information on the product’s origin would be available.

The products that had the highest degree of transparency were goods with short supply chains, supply chains located entirely in Sweden, or supply chains overseen by a single company. 🔗

This is a great example of how investigative journalism can shed light on the problems at hand.

Limited information on value chains is often cited as a key hindrance for sustainability reports and assessments. 👩‍💻

This is particularly the case when it comes to products commonly perceived as ‘dirty,’ polluting or based on human exploitation. Of course, it is highly unlikely that a supplier of such products would 1) undertake a sustainability assessment in the first place and 2) share the findings with a smile.

That is why the recent legislative developments are so important. 🚨

The EU is pursuing harmonization in reporting standards which are more extensive than ever before and will also affect non-EU entities. Is your company prepared?

Beyond the mandatory requirements, voluntary initiatives such as the EPD System enable companies to assess their own supply chains and present third-party verified information on their product’s environmental impact all the way from the extraction of primary resources to the end-of-life.

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