HS2 - evolving thinking on applying circular economy thinking in an infrastructure project

Editor's Notes

• #2: Over the past year our approach to materials and waste in HS2 has become more and more integrated as we have started to explore what the circular economy might mean for the project. And that’s why today you have 2 for the price of one, I am Waste and Materials recovery manager and Andrea is Sustainable Materials Manager and we want to share with you today where we have got to in this exploration and where it ight be taking us too.
• #3: But first a brief overview of the project so everyone is on the same page…
• #4: As I’m sure you are all aware, HS2 is a new dedicated high speed rail line. Initially connecting Birmingham and London, But subsequently on to Manchester in the West and Leeds in the East. Onward services will also connect to many more locations on the existing network.
• #5: And the reason we are doing this is to enhance both capacity and connectivity. When Phase One between Birmingham and London opens, there will be up to 10 trains per hour in each direction - each carrying as many as 1,100 passengers, and when Phase 2 is operational there will be up to 18 trains per hour.
• #6: To give you a feel of the scale of the project: The Phase One route length is 230km 46km of this is in tunnels; and there are around 300 bridges This does not include phases 2a or 2b which brings the total route length up to around 580 km.
• #7: And here’s our timeline We’re expecting Royal Assent for Phase One any day now. This marks a significant milestone for us are we move from planning to construction. Full Phase Two royal assent will follow in 2022. By 2033 the whole Y shape network will be operational.
• #8: But it’s not just what we build, but how we deliver it that will define our success That is why we have a culture based around four values of safety, integrity, respect and leadership Which describe the way we behave. And three ways of doing things; sustainability, collaboration and innovation
• #9: Throughout everything we do, we are working towards delivering our strategic goals, shown here. These goals are how we will evaluate our performance.
• #10: We cannot meet all these goals by doing what has been done before. And we think that adopting circular economy principles could play a significant role in helping us do this. Any why do we think that? Because there is a strong correlation between our strategic goals and circular economy principles…
• #11: There are the obvious environmental benefits.
• #12: And there is evidence that is should help us deliver value on the project
• #13: But it actually touches on the majorty of our strategic goals.
• #14: So while we had a strong environment team and sustainability policy, we didn’t want to miss out on the potential benefits that the circular economy might bring to the project, so we set out on a journey to explore what it might mean, how aligned our current policies and requirement were and what more we could do. (And now I’ll hand over to Andrea to share how we have done that…)
• #15: We decided that the first thing we needed was more of a definition of what we meant by circular economy. As I’m sure you are aware there and many definitins out there and while its not always necessary to clarify these things, we felt to facilitate internal and external discussions it was important to be able to articulate the concept.
• #16: So after looking at a wide range of definitions from other parties, we decided to use the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s definition as a starting point, and so for the purposes of our project, a circular economy is one in which we: keep resources in use for as long as possible, recover and regenerate resources at the end of each use, and keep resources at their highest utility and value at all times. These three outcomes are underpinned by an over-arching objective to use resources efficiently. And currently we are thinking of resources in terms of materials, water and energy/carbon. The next step was taking this definition and starting to explore what this meant for the project.
• #17: So with the help of Jo, from Useful Projects who is here today, we explored which of these principles were most relevant to different parts of the project. For example Recovering resources is a really key priority when we are looking at demolition and site clearance activities, but for the civil strictures, longevity is of paramount importance and then for shorter life elements such as the railway systems, being able to keep resources at the highest value is relevant.
• #18: And we also explored what actions or activities could contribute to achieving the principles in each of these areas of our programme. These are only indicative and many of these activities are applicable across a range of asset types. And then we assessed how aligned our existing policies, processes and requirements were to supporting implementing these policies and what further opportunities there are. And I’m going to use the time we have left to share some examples of both what we are already doing and further opportunities.
• #19: One area where we have tried to be proactive is around looking for opportunities to maximise the reuse and value associated with materials we will be generating. The first example is looking at our surplus excavated materials. As well as trying to identify other projects that may require the materials, such as flood defence projects with the Environment Agency, we have also been exploring the possibility of providing these materials as input to manufacturing processes. After getting some initial market engagement conducted through the Construction Products Association, we are now in the process of providing samples to manufacturers for testing.
• #20: Another material stream we are trying to maximise the value of is felled timber. Instead of being chipped for reuse, we are commissioning woodland valuation surveys and have written guidance (with the help of Charlie Law who I think is also here) to our contractors of how to maximise the value, whether this is through provision to a local community of through commercial agreements with timber merchants.
• #21: As you would expect, we have waste generation and landfill diversion targets and we are also requiring pre-demolition audits. But we are also conduction salvage audits for all buildings requiring to identify items of reuse or heritage value. An area of further opportunity is around facilitating greater reuse, whether that’s of demolition material, surplus materials, plant or other equipment, either within the project or externally. Perhaps this could be through specialist reuse contractors similar to the Olympics or through new digital systems and platforms.
• #22: Looking at the stations, we have requirements for zero operational carbon and there could be innovative circular approaches to achieving this through procuring lighting rather than lights, on a performance-related service model, which could also have material benefits in terms of take back and remanufacturing of the fixtures. There could be other packages which may provide both cost and environmental benefits if procured differently, perhaps the provision of energy, or even the provision of washroom facilities!
• #23: Looking towards the end of life of our assets, to assist in enabling the recovery of materials, our stations, depots and other railway buildings will have design for deconstruction plans. And other assets will have as-built materials inventories, containing material quantities, specifications, warranties, details of the manufacturers, design and/or service life Not only will this assist in maintenance, hopefully this should help n identify the future recovery potential of the assets if and when they are no longer required. The intention is that this information will all be stored in BIM but there are definitely opportunities to integrate this further and explore how this links with the idea of materials passports.
• #24: During operation will be have large areas of landscaping, we plan to look into the potential for the maintenance of these areas to be productive in terms of biomass generation as opposed to a cost burden to maintain.
• #25: And finally, we have discussed what the circular economy might mean for properties that we need to purchase as part of the scheme, that these provide any societal function whilst in our ownership?
• #26: So that’s a snapshot of where we are on our journey to exploring what the circular economy means for a large infrastructure project. These key principles are relevant to everything we and our supply chain do. Delivering them will require consideration throughout design, procurement, construction and operation. It could require alternative approaches to design or procurement and the adoption of innovative products, processes or technologies. As we move from planning to construction we will of course keep looking for and exploring opportunities But we will not be able to achieve this alone, as we start to hand over the baton to our supply chain and hope that together we can find solutions that respond to these principles and help us realise the benefits.
• #27: I hope you have found that an interesting overview. For those that see yourselves as part of the hs2 supply chain, there are three things I ask you to do today; 1. View our supply chain resources in the “business” section of our website, such as the Supplier Guide and FAQs 2. Access our business resources by registering as an interested supplier 3. Send us your questions by e-mailing our Supply Chain Team.