How Zurich Blazed a Trail for Recycled Concrete

The Swiss city requires recycled concrete to be used in the construction of public buildings. Now other cities are following its lead

The David Chipperfield-designed extension to Kunsthaus Zurich, the main art gallery in Zurich, is built with a share of 98% recycled concrete.
The David Chipperfield-designed extension to Kunsthaus Zurich, the main art gallery in Zurich, is built with a share of 98% recycled concrete. Source: David Chipperfield Architects


By Corinne Gretler Bloomberg CityLab
September 27, 2021, 1:00 AM EDT

As more and more new buildings are erected around the world, one city in Europe is trying to make the concrete jungle a bit greener.

Zurich has quietly become a frontrunner in advancing environmentally friendly construction, adopting green measures long before most companies started publicly emphasizing their sustainability.

Inspired by a public debate about two decades ago on how to reduce the amount of gravel that’s extracted and used in construction, Switzerland’s largest city has become a trailblazer for more sustainable construction. It built its first building with recycled concrete — a school building where 80% of concrete used had come through the recycling process — as far back as 2002. Three years later, it introduced a requirement that all publicly-owned buildings have to be made using recycled concrete. In 2013, the city went a step further to mandate the use of Co2-reduced cement. Now other cities are starting to take note, adopting practices that have been standard in Zurich for more than a decade.

Read the full story here

If you liked this post you’ll love our daily newsletter, EnviroPolitics. It’s packed with the latest news, commentary, and legislative updates from New Jersey, Pennsylvania, New York, Delaware…and beyond. Don’t take our word for it, try it free for an entire month. No obligation.

How Zurich Blazed a Trail for Recycled Concrete Read More »

Most enviro advocates cheer latest offshore wind leases but Clean Ocean Action has reservations


Environmental advocates are applauding plans to develop offshore wind off the coast of NJ in a part of the ocean known as the New York Bight. Last week, six companies were awarded lease areas after completing a competitive bidding process worth more than $4 billion. The projects developed on the lease sites could provide enough electricity to power 2 million homes.

Clean Ocean Action, an organization credited with stopping ocean dumping and praised for its annual ‘beach sweeps,’ says it supports offshore energy but fears its large-scale implementation is being rushed without adequate consideration of the impact on ocean animals and sea life.

Don’t miss environmental news like this Click for free updates

Most enviro advocates cheer latest offshore wind leases but Clean Ocean Action has reservations Read More »

NJ Senate newcomer reproaches Murphy for plan to send guardsmen to D.C. truckers rally

Truckers block traffic for days last month in Ottowa, Canada. A similar protest is planned for Washington, D.C.

Freshman Republican State Senator Edward Durr said Governor Phil Murphy’s plan to send New Jersey National Guard troops to Washington, D.C. for a rally planned by truck drivers is a waste of resources when many State services remain inaccessible to New Jerseyans.

“A peaceful truck rally in Washington is where Governor Murphy thinks he should dedicate State resources while unemployment offices remain closed, the MVC is still a mess, and thousands of Corrections Officers and health care professionals are on the verge of losing their jobs due to unnecessary vaccine mandates,” said Durr (R-3), the career truck driver who won a stunning upset in November over Democratic Senate President Steve Sweeney.

“It’s another example of Governor Murphy focusing on Washington instead of helping people here in New Jersey. It’s beyond offensive,” Durr said,

The Murphy administration announced that more than 100 troops from New Jersey’s National Guard will be sent to Washington in advance of the planned truck convoy.

“The governor may have reveled in the images of peaceful protesters being hauled off to jail in an authoritarian manner by Justin Trudeau in Canada, but that’s not how we do things in the United States,” added Durr. “If Governor Murphy wants to be President, he should know that.”

Don’t miss political news like this Click for free updates

NJ Senate newcomer reproaches Murphy for plan to send guardsmen to D.C. truckers rally Read More »

PSEG says New Jersey will need nuclear at least until 2050, may extend ZEC cycle

Flickr user Nicholas Tonelli

By Robert Walton Utility Drive Reporter

Public Service Enterprise Group (PSEG) has completed the sale of its fossil fuel generation portfolio, including 6,750 MW in New Jersey, Connecticut, Maryland, and New York. That leaves the company more than 90% regulated and focused on reaching net-zero emissions by 2030, company leaders said Thursday during PSEG’s Q4 2021 earnings call with analysts.

PSEG is now focused on “clean energy and infrastructure investments to drive regulated utility growth ” PSEG CEO Ralph Izzo said. The company owns three nuclear units in New Jersey and expects they will remain in operation for almost 30 more years, he said.

The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (BPU) in April extended zero-emission credit (ZEC) subsidies for the state’s nuclear plants. The ZEC process runs every three years, but Izzo said he expects the cycle to be lengthened rather than run through the same debates repeatedly.

Read the full story here

Don’t miss energy news like this Click for free updates

PSEG says New Jersey will need nuclear at least until 2050, may extend ZEC cycle Read More »

Supreme Court today will hear climate change case with a significant potential impact

The court could handcuff President Biden’s climate change agenda — and restrict federal agencies from enacting new regulations governing health, workplace safety, and more.

Credit…Manuel Balce Ceneta/Associated Press

By Coral Davenport New York Times

WASHINGTON — In the most important environmental case in more than a decade, the Supreme Court on Monday will hear arguments in a dispute that could restrict or even eliminate the Environmental Protection Agency’s authority to control the pollution that is heating the planet.

A decision by the high court, with its conservative supermajority, could shred President Biden’s plans to halve the nation’s greenhouse emissions by the end of the decade, which scientists have said is necessary to avert the most catastrophic impacts of climate change.

Related environmental news:
Court to weigh EPA authority on greenhouse pollutants (Yale Climate Connections)
U.S. utilities side with environment agency in Supreme Court  (Reuters)
Enviro groups respond to attacks against Clean Air Act (Environmental Defense Fund)

“They could handcuff the federal government’s ability to affordably reduce greenhouse gases from power plants,” said Michael Oppenheimer, a professor of geosciences and international affairs at Princeton University.

But the outcome could also have repercussions that stretch well beyond air pollution, restricting the ability of federal agencies to regulate health care, workplace safety, telecommunications, the financial sector, and more.

Read the full story here

If you liked this post you’ll love our daily newsletter, EnviroPolitics. It’s packed with the latest news, commentary, and legislative updates from New Jersey, Pennsylvania, New York, Delaware…and beyond. Don’t take our word for it, try it free for an entire month. No obligation.

Supreme Court today will hear climate change case with a significant potential impact Read More »