Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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360. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the extent to which the use of concrete in house building contributes to any emissions whether during construction, processing or thereafter; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22860/22]

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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361. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the extent to which conventional house building through the use of concrete or concrete products contributes to greenhouse gases as opposed to wooden-framed housing; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22862/22]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 360 and 361 together.

Climate Action Plan 2021 commits to working with industry stakeholders to increase the use of low carbon materials and technologies in the construction and renovation of buildings in Ireland, informed by evolving EU standards and by best practice in other jurisdictions.

Embodied Carbon in construction materials makes a significant contribution to the lifetime carbon emissions of new buildings. Currently these embodied carbon emissions are addressed in the Climate Action Plan and the Construction Products Regulation. Separately, the operational carbon emissions for heating, lighting and other services have been significantly reduced in Nearly Zero Energy Buildings. These regulations apply to all new buildings including social and affordable housing developments. 

A taskforce chaired by Department of Enterprise Trade and Employment  is currently examining the actions required to achieve the Climate Action Plan target of a “10% (and up to 60%) decrease in embodied carbon in construction materials” including low carbon cement – as per Action 134 in Climate Action Plan 2021 (Annex of Actions).

Under Action 197 of CAP 2021 the Office of Public Works (OPW) are putting in place a roadmap to promote greater use of lower-carbon building material alternatives in construction and the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) are also carrying out a research and development project to examine life cycle analysis and embedded energy in buildings to compare the use of sustainable materials and under Action 198 of CAP 2021 are developing an embodied carbon building rating calculation methodology.

The review of Regulation (EU) No 305/2011 (known as the Constructions Products Regulations or “the CPR”) was confirmed by the European green deal in December 2019 and the circular economy action plan in March 2020. In parallel, the European Commission initiated discussion on an implementation plan for a future environmental life cycle assessment framework for construction products, looking at the impacts on the wider environment that occur during the whole life cycle of a construction product. The objective is to identify the strategic issues that need to be addressed with a view to the implementation of Basic Works Requirement 7 ‘Sustainable Use of Natural Resources’ (BWR7) in the context of the current and the future revision to the Construction Products Regulation.

The European Commission published a proposal on 30th March and are currently inviting feedback on this for a minimum period of 8 weeks (03 April 2022 - 16 June 2022). Further detail can be found at: www.ec.europa.eu/info/law/better-regulation/have-your-say/initiatives/12458-Construction[1]products-review-of-EU-rules_en .

All feedback received will be summarised by the European Commission and presented to the European Parliament and Council with the aim of feeding into the legislative debate. Separately, my Department intends to consult with relevant stakeholders on the legislative proposal.

Ireland will be obliged to follow this harmonised procedure via harmonised technical specifications for construction products, when a consensus of approach emerges. In that regard, it would be counter to harmonisation to develop national rules for matters covered by the Internal Market regulation.

Housing for All commits that the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (DETE), supported by my Department, will promote a culture of innovation in residential construction. This will be achieved through, the development of Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) and the establishment of a Centre of Excellence Demonstration Park for MMC.

In addition my Department has issued design guidelines for sustainable housing which includes recommendations to have due regard for the environmental impact of construction materials. These guidelines “Quality Housing for Sustainable Communities” are available on my Department’s website at the following link. www.gov.ie/en/publication/24d9e-quality-housing-for-sustainable-communities-design-guidelines/