Tom Harrison is group strategic accounts director at ports operator Peel Ports Group\u00a0<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n
The construction sector faces a pivotal time. The latest Environmental Audit Committee report challenges the long-held assumption that environmental protections slow housing delivery, and warns of a widening skills gap that could derail both housing and environmental targets.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cA 1,700-tonne barge on the Thames removes more than 50 HGVs from local roads\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n The industry cannot continue to blame external factors for slow sustainability progress. As we approach 2050, more legislation and tighter carbon standards are inevitable, making proactive action essential across the sector.<\/span><\/p>\n Despite clear ambition, the industry\u2019s carbon progress remains uneven. The RICS Sustainability Report 2025 found that 46 per cent of professionals still do not measure embodied carbon, up from 34 per cent the year before, while only 16 per cent claim carbon measurement meaningfully influences material selection.<\/span><\/p>\n This realisation, coupled with the UK\u2019s most ambitious housebuilding targets in decades and major infrastructure projects being planned nationwide, means construction leaders must think beyond their current sustainability tactics. How to build greener can no longer be the only focus. Instead, leaders should look to project enablers for support. This includes a greener supply chain.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Much of construction\u2019s climate impact occurs before a building is erected. The UK Green Building Council estimates that around one in 10 tonnes of national greenhouse gas emissions comes from embodied carbon, exceeding emissions from aviation and shipping combined.<\/span><\/p>\n Without coordinated action, these upstream emissions risk undermining project-level sustainability gains. Redesigning logistics is one of the fastest, most practical levers to address this challenge.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n With market activity currently subdued, now is an ideal time to rethink logistics systems with carbon reduction in mind. Rather than relying heavily on road transport, materials can move through ports and inland waterways instead. These coordinated routes reduce handling, shorten delivery distances, and shift freight to cleaner transport modes aligned with national decarbonisation targets.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Waterborne freight is central to this agenda. For example, a 1,700-tonne barge on the Thames removes more than 50 HGVs from local roads. Tactics like this cut emissions before a project even begins, while also easing congestion and reducing pressure on driver capacity, which remains tight in many regions.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Progress in operational emissions is an ongoing effort, but another major opportunity to unlocking environmental gains lies in sourcing and moving materials. Smarter logistics, built on existing infrastructure and proven transport modes, offers a tangible way to cut embodied carbon at scale.<\/span><\/p>\n Coordinated efforts to achieve these aims are critical and collaboration between logistics and construction leaders is imperative. Ports provide entry points for materials, barge operators bring inland waterway expertise, and construction firms understand sequencing, volume requirements and programme pressures.<\/span><\/p>\n When these perspectives align, the result is a logistics ecosystem capable of moving large volumes efficiently and sustainably. This helps construction leaders make strides to decrease emissions in the pre-construction phase of development, setting the stage for further environmental success.<\/span><\/p>\n As the sector prepares for its next cycle of growth, now is the time to act. Modernising supply chains, consolidating material flows and embracing water-based transport can boost productivity, lower emissions, and maintain momentum on housing and infrastructure goals.<\/span><\/p>\n The tools exist and the benefits, which include lower costs, reduced congestion and measurable carbon reductions, are immediate. What is now required is collective commitment, cross-sector synergy and the courage to rethink traditional logistics habits.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Sustainability cannot be an afterthought. By focusing on the enabling structures that allow greener construction, the industry can meet regulatory expectations and unlock operational efficiency. This will help to ensure genuine environmental improvements are made across the sector.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Tom Harrison is group strategic accounts director at ports operator Peel Ports Group\u00a0 The construction sector faces a pivotal time. The latest Environmental Audit Committee report challenges the long-held assumption that environmental protections slow housing delivery, and warns of a widening skills gap that could derail both housing and environmental targets. \u201cA 1,700-tonne barge on …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":534353,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ep_exclude_from_search":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[567,57171],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-534401","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-opinion","category-supply-chain"],"yoast_head":"\nLogistics remains an overlooked carbon source\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n
Cross-sector collaboration<\/span><\/h3>\n