Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 1 December 2011
76 Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if the Office of Public Works intends to introduce a requirement that State-funded construction contracts specify the use of an imported substitute product instead of indigenously produced cement; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38177/11]
View answer77 Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if the Office of Public Works has carried out an impact assessment on its proposal to specify the use of imported substitute materials instead of indigenously produced Irish cement in State-funded construction projects. [38178/11]
View answer78 Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if his attention has been drawn to the fact that a proposed requirement being prepared by the Office of Public Works which will require State-funded construction contracts to specify the use of an imported substitute product instead of indigenously produced cement would be without precedent within the EU; if his further attention has been drawn to the detrimental consequences arising for the cement manufacturing sector here, up to and including potential plant closures and significant job losses at a time when the Irish construction sector is struggling to survive; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38179/11]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 76 to 78, inclusive, together.
A short introduction to the background of these questions is necessary. The Office of Public Works (OPW) has been tasked with producing a Guidance Document on Construction Procurement which will address the major elements of construction including cement. The Guidance Document will form part of the Green Public Procurement (GPP) Action Plan being developed by the Department of the Environment and Local Government. The GPP Action Plan was approved by government in November and its publication is set to take place in the new year. The legislative basis for Green Public Procurement is established in EU Directives 17 and 18 of 2004.
Green Public Procurement is defined in EU Communication 400 of 2008 as "Public Procurement for a better Environment". It is defined as “a process whereby public authorities seek to procure goods, services and works with reduced environmental impact throughout their life-cycle compared to goods, services and works with the same primary function that would otherwise be procured.”
The Guidance Document will include cement, as the manufacture of this material has one of the most significant environmental impacts of all construction materials. The document recommends the use of alternative cements as a means of reducing this environmental impact. The Guidance Document is produced in reference to the National Concrete Standard IS EN 206, which makes provision for the use of several different alternative cements, including limestone, pulverised fly ash (PVA), slag and pozzelanas. PVA is a recyclable by-product of coal power electricity generation such as is found at Moneypoint, Co. Clare. Slag is a recyclable by-product of steel manufacture and is available from Britain, north west France, Belgium and Holland.
The Guidance Document does not require the use of any particular alternative cement — all are acceptable. Neither does it require a particular percentage use of alternative cement. Decisions on the type and quantity of alternative cements are left to the judgement of the specifying authority and are to be made in the context of the functional and technical requirements of the specific project. In conforming with EU procurement principles the Guidance Document avoids being specific in favour of any particular product or supplier.
The Guidance Document does not make any proposal requiring the use of imported materials. However, the OPW has made a number of assessments into the impact of increasing the use of alternative cements. These assessments have included:
1) Cost abatement data produced by the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) demonstrating that the use of alternative cements provides a cost-saving to the economy. (Ireland's Low Carbon Opportunity published in 2009)
2) Consideration of the technical potentials as provided for in the National Concrete Standard IS EN 206 and demonstrated in recent projects using alternative cements e.g. the Jack Lynch tunnel in Cork, the Dundrum Luas Bridge in Dublin, the Shannon tunnel in Limerick and the National Conference Centre in Dublin.
3) Assessment of the non-technical factors influencing the potential use of cements made in relation to critical factors outlined in the ‘Cement Technology Roadmap 2009' by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development and the International Energy Agency. These indicate that Ireland has high potential for the use of alternative cements.
4) Analysis of potential changes to carbon foot-printing methodologies and of potential transition to using full Life Cycle Analysis in material impact assessments. Both of these demonstrate that alternative cements reduce the environmental impact of cement. Throughout Europe there is widespread use of alternative cements by reason of sustainability, technical issues and cost benefit. All manufacturing facilities of cement production in Ireland benefit significantly from the European Trading Scheme (ETS) financial subsidy. It is understood this will continue into the future providing employment assurance to manufacturers experiencing production slow down due to economic and other reasons. It is noted that data from CemBureau (the European wide association of cement manufacturers) shows that there has been significant production over-capacity in the Irish cement industry.
