E5 – Resource use and circular economy

Process regarding materiality

In order to evaluate Peab’s impacts, risks and opportunities in relation to resource use and circular economy in our own operations and value chains we have worked in cross-functional teams with employee representation from the entire Group. We have conducted a double materiality assessment for E5 resource use and circular economy per value chain and country and thereafter consolidated the assessments to Group level. The cross-functional teams have mainly consisted of resource use and circular economy specialists from the four business areas, financial controllers and category purchasers. In addition a number of employees from Group functions have participated in the work. The function non-financial reporting has coordinated the process regarding materiality, which has been conducted as described in the section ESRS 2 on page 49.

This is how we work

Peab has a responsibility for our resource use and to promote circular economy throughout the value chain in order to save valuable natural resources and contribute to our climate target. One of Peab’s three environmental targets adopted by executive management is that by 2040 our business will be 100 percent resource efficient. The resource efficiency target entails striving towards increasingly circular business models, optimizing resource use and minimizing waste. We have targets, metrics and strategic improvement areas regarding waste intensity, the degree of sorting and actual recycling degree as well as other key performance indicators without targets on both Group and business area levels. We see the opportunities of efficient resource use and promoting circular economy in Peab’s business models and strategies.

Responsibility and policies

The Group’s Head of Environment coordinates and drives joint environmental matters, including resource use and circular economy, together with business area environmental managers and climate specialists. The Group has a so-called Circularity Council to ensure a holistic perspective and efficient management of a country’s and/or Group-wise matters. The Group’s environmental functions support the responsible managers in making decisions about resource use and circular economy in order to turn plans into action and generate progress.

The majority of Peab’s operations work within the framework of a management system that is environmentally certified according to ISO 14001. The management system contains procedures that describe how we work with resource use and circular economy. The environmental management system is integrated into our business management system which, among other things, comprises Peab’s Environmental Policy. The four business areas are responsible for implementation and compliance with the management system and policies in day-to-day work. There are company specific procedures and guidance concerning resource and waste management to steer daily operations towards our target. Environmentally certifying a building, through for example Swan ecolabelling, means we also take resource use and circular economy into consideration.

We ensure that waste management is safe and secure by making sure that our waste contractors have the required permits to operate before we sign a contract.

Work method and focus areas

We work to reduce the environmental impact of waste based on waste hierarchy. This means that we primarily strive to minimize the amount of waste generated and secondly steer the waste that, despite our efforts, is created into preparation for reuse or material recycling like reclaimed asphalt pavement. We also strive to reduce how hazardous waste is and increase the use of recycled material in the products we manufacture and use along with the possibility to recycle the products after use.

We strive for resource efficient production by caution with non-renewable resources, efficient use of material, responsible management of residual products and work methods that reduce waste while increasing the degree of circularity in our business. This includes designing resource efficient constructions, minimizing and recycling waste, reusing construction material and ensuring left over material is used, managing excavated soil efficiently and circularly, a higher degree of sorting in preparation for recycling material and procuring circular products.

From waste to circular material

When it comes to taking advantage of business potential in resource use and circular economy Peab offers the market, for example, ECO-Ballast (ECO-Mineral aggregates). The product has the equivalent properties of virgin mineral aggregates and is quality-ensured with an environmental and health declaration. ECO-Ballast can be used in the manufacture of asphalt and concrete or as a construction material and is a significant contribution to circular community building.

Innovation and design are important elements in all work connected to resource use and circular economy.

There are several construction projects with reuse targets where Peab together with the customers explore new ways to reuse construction products. We regularly evaluate opportunities for circular material flows, regarding both input raw material in production and the recyclability of manufactured products. In addition to ECO-Ballast, the binder Merit which is based on slag which is a byproduct from the steel industry and the use of reclaimed asphalt pavement in our pavement production are other examples of circular material flows.

Dialogues early on with material suppliers are crucial to being able to use more products that contain a higher degree of reused material. We have supplier dialogues aimed at creating action plans for greater circularity through, among other things, a higher level of reused material in products and packaging. Peab also has contracts with reuse companies in around 70 different locations and we are constantly on the lookout for more. We have several construction projects focused on reuse such as the Arctic Center of Energy in Skellefteå, the Botanical Gardens and the Administrative Court in Gothenburg as well as Varvstaden in Malmö. This provides important experience for more circular construction. In the Peab company Lambertsson the circular economic idea of renting instead buying is the basis for our electrical equipment range and fossil free transportation machines. Lambertsson has a comprehensive portfolio of machines and services that we regularly renew and environmentally adapt as products and technology develops.

With so-called C&D Recycling Wash Plants Swerock contributes to circular material flows by upgrading surplus excavation soil to usable products. This reduces the amount of surplus excavation soil that becomes landfill by up to 80 percent. Peab’s civil engineering operations work increasingly with so-called in situ remediation which entails remediating contaminated land and dredged soil on site instead of removing the soil. This also means transporting less replacement soil for filling. According to our life ­cy­cle calculations in­ si­tu remediation and stabilization of polluted soil can lower carbon emissions by 80 per­cent. During the year we have carried out in situ remediation at, among other places, Bobergsgatan and Norra Djurgårdsstaden in Stockholm.

Collaboration in focus

Peab has the greatest opportunity to steer the extent of environmental impact in our own production but we can also influence other actors’ environmental impact through dialogue, requirements and our product and service range. We also collaborate with suppliers and manufacturers, within and outside of our traditional value chains in order to continually improve and develop resource use and circular material flows. Three good examples are reclaimed asphalt paving, ECO-Ballast and reuse in construction projects.

We hold environmental dialogues with our material suppliers that include reviewing how they work with reused raw materials in their products and packaging, if they use returnable load carriers and if they plan to develop their circular flows. Our goal is to have an environmental dialogue in connection with framework procurements in categories  of major importance to the environment that result in an action plan for suppliers with follow-up a few times a year.

We are also active in different initiatives to develop knowledge and drive issues concerning resource use and circular economy together with other actors in our industry. For example, we participate in The Swedish Construction Federation’s reference group that develops the industry’s resource and waste guidelines.