Concrete in its raw sense could be described as a ‘green’ material. It is hewn from rock and the earth, ground into a fine powder, mixed with a few other raw components, the most important being water, and then mixed and allowed to set, wherever it is needed.
In its raw state concrete powder is environmentally friendly, as it is of the environment itself – a natural component. But it is in the industrial extraction of the materials, the mixing, and of course the application of concrete that is ceases to be environmentally friendly.
Working with Concrete
Concrete is available in many dry forms and comes as a raw powder – in small sacks for the home user, or in huge containers for builders, construction engineers, and many other professional tradesmen. Concrete is now perhaps the most commonly used material on the planet. It is everywhere – in roads and paths, walls, houses, bridges; and has a wonderful versatility in that it can be mixed with many other materials like stone, bitumen, asphalt, to give greater strength to structures and surfaces.
It is only in its most natural state that concrete could be described as green, and only as a powder can concrete be degradable. In working with concrete, when it is mixed and churned with water, it becomes loose and putty like, and from this point on there is a short period when it can be applied before it starts to set and harden.
This industrial use of concrete is the essence of all building projects: when the material comes out of the mixer and is laid down, or used to form bricks, or mixed with other materials. There can be a lot of industrial waste during this process: much of the concrete will not be used immediately, and will harden and be left unused. The process also uses and wastes a lot of water which is not so friendly to the environment.
Pollution of water can also occur at this and every stage of the process – from extraction of concrete through to its eventual application – and particularly if this water then becomes ground water or reaches the river systems, the natural environment can become polluted.
Disposing of Concrete
In its final form, as waste, concrete is far from being either biodegradable or environmentally friendly. It generally has to be smashed up and removed in chunks. One of the benefits of working with concrete is that it is adaptable, hard wearing and long lasting, but once it has started cracking, or becoming uneven, then it needs to be replaced, or covered with further layers of new concrete.
There are other green materials that can be used for some building and construction purposes – more wood can be used in house construction, for instance. But in generals humans need to wean ourselves off our devotion to and reliance upon ugly grey, environmentally unfriendly concrete. Materials that work with and do not despoil the natural environment need to be found and experimented with.
Would you be able to give me a quote for environmentally friendly concrete or direct me to a site or company which can? Many Thanks, Ann
It is a shame you have posted an article such as this by someone who would appear to be not particularly familiar with concrete. Avoiding pedantry I will try to restrict my comments to the more important errors. There is not a lot of waste created by unused concrete except perhaps in small quantities by over-enthusiastic do-it-yourselfers. Most concrete will be supplied from ready-mixed plants in the precise quantities required, and any left unused can be returned for the aggregates to be washed out and re-used. Mixing concrete neither uses nor wastes a lot of water. The water used in mixing concrete is essential to its chemical reaction and to give it plasticity. That water either remains within the concrete or evaporates off harmlessly. Water used to wash returning lorries is carefully collected and re-cycled. It certainly doesn’t beome ground water.I could go on but seeing concrete described as “ugly grey, environmentally unfriendly” suggests the author already has a fixed opinion. The use of large quantities of concrete, particularly in civil engineering applications is unavoidable but the concrete industry is working hard to reduce its environmental impact.
You write an article about concrete and the environment and fail to mention that the cement industry is one of the biggest contributors to climate change!
Hi i am in M.E Structural student any idea about Project in concrete area..
The making of cement, which requires burning limestone, a rock, until it turns to a powder, consumes huge amounts of fossil fuels for the heat, and is as a consequence responsible for 7 to 9 percent of the man-made CO2 in the atmosphere. That is staggering. Cement is the most widely used building material on Earth. Combining these two facts, cement, and the concrete made from it, constitute an environmental disaster. No building that uses any appreciable amount of cement can be called green or sustainable; nothing could be farther from the truth. Take a minute to Google, “energy used in the manufacture of cement” or something similar to confirm this yourself. Then avoid the use of cement in new buildings as if the lives of your grandchilden depended on that…because they do!