Inequalities in the production and use of cement and concrete, and their consequences for decarbonisation and sustainable development

The following paper brings out themes relating to inequalities and environmental injustice. The focus within the paper is inequalities surrounding the production of concrete. Concrete is vital for constructing infrastructure and housing, and cement is the key binding material within concrete. With a growing focus on how cement and concrete contribute to sustainable development, there is a knowledge gap around their intersection with inequalities. An exploratory analysis was carried out to investigate intersections between inequality issues and cement and concrete, both through their production as commodities and through their use in built assets. Industry associations’ narratives around sustainable development generally lack a detailed vision for addressing inequalities, in comparison to their focus on decarbonisation. Lukes’ three dimensional framework of power was applied to interrogate the underlying power dynamics for several inequality issues. Inequalities are shown to be a systemic issue for cement and concrete, spanning intra- and inter-national scales, and all three dimensions of power. Whilst several inequalities are consequential from more generic, structural inequalities, other inequalities are specific to the cement and concrete sector, including workforce inequalities. The cement and concrete sector is recommended to develop its conception of inequalities in relation to sustainable development: this can help reduce inequalities within its own workforce more effectively, and also reduce the risks of missing its decarbonisation targets.