Buy better to build better: Green public procurement can unlock sustainable construction
By 
By Construction products are one of the most significant contributors to environmental damage with an annual carbon footprint of 250 million tonnes in the EU. This is equivalent to the electricity use of nearly 500 million homes in a single year. Beyond emissions, construction products account for half of the EU's total material consumption and contribute to about one-third of the bloc's annual waste output.
Despite this, most European countries do not require environmental criteria for public procurement, which accounts for a staggering 14% of the EU’s GDP. Construction activities are no exception.
But if done right, green public procurement could ensure that all products purchased by public institutions meet ambitious environmental standards, significantly reducing the environmental footprint of highly polluting sectors, including construction.
Take the Netherlands, for example, as one of the few countries to monitor the effect of green public procurement across eight types of products – recording annual reductions in greenhouse gas emissions by 5 million tonnes. Or Berlin, where construction tenders exceeding 50,000 EUR were required to include specific environmental criteria, and where environmental considerations applied to 15 product groups, resulting in a 47% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, and 4% lower cost.
The numbers are clear. Green public procurement is not a ‘nice to have’. It is a must for the EU to meet its ambitious climate goals. However, green procurement remains mostly voluntary – relying on public authorities to determine if and how environmental impacts determine procurement procedures for construction products. As a result, the uptake of green procurement has been low and uneven with some countries or regions – like the Netherlands and Berlin – taking the lead, and others lagging.
Making green public procurement mandatory would level the playing field and promote best practices – ensuring that all actors across the value chain adhere to the same set of rules. And fostering a demand for green products and services will lead to further cost reductions over time.
Making green public procurement mandatory would also be a counterweight to market entry barriers for low-carbon materials, such as prescriptive standards or free emissions allowances for high-emission manufacturers. Green public procurement could incentivise demand while also harmonising EU countries’ approach to the urgently needed decarbonisation of the construction sector.
The EU is already behind in greening the construction sector, while green public procurement has taken off internationally. In the United States, the 2021 Buy Clean Initiative (bolstered by the Inflation Reduction Act) has been promoting the use of low-carbon construction materials in federal procurement and projects with the potential to cut the sector’s emissions by 25% by 2030.
The time is now to take green public procurement from a seldomly used framework to a mandatory and unified approach. European legislation has shown progress, but further steps must follow.
In December 2023, negotiations on the Construction Products Regulation (CPR) and Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR) concluded – marking two major milestones for green public procurement. If they are finally adopted by the European Parliament and the Council, they will oblige the Commission to define criteria for green construction materials. Good implementation of both laws will not only favour lower-impact products, but also allow buyers – institutional, professional or private – to make informed decisions: the buyer will have standardised information on products’ entire environmental impact through mandatory Environmental Product Declarations.
Unfortunately, these positive developments are at risk. The ESPR’s timeline remains ambiguous without clear guidelines for defining green public procurement criteria for the different product groups. Additionally, both regulations contain short-sighted derogations that are placing the price of sustainable products above our future.
Policymakers must now focus on building a strong, mandatory, and science-based implementation framework for green public procurement that tackles the heaviest polluters first, such as cement and steel. This must be done with active engagement from civil society, coupled with a review of the EU Procurement Directives – the general rules for public tenders that currently make environmental criteria optional.
To ensure success, this framework must also work for those implementing it. Even when manufacturers, suppliers, or public authorities are motivated to reduce the environmental impact of public works, several barriers exist. Complex procedures, limited capacity and poorly trained staff are often blamed for lack of progress. Nevertheless, the encouraging examples from the Netherlands and Berlin have shown that solutions exist.
Without exploiting the full potential of green public procurement, the EU – with ambitious green and circular goals – risks falling behind its greenhouse gas 2030 targets. Green public procurement is a key piece of the puzzle – let’s make sure we do not overlook it.
