Reducing the impact of transporting aggregates
Introduction
The Government intends to fund a collaborative research project with industry funding 50% of the overall project cost. It aims to identify ways of reducing the impact of transporting aggregates.
Background
The Aggregates Levy reduces demand for primary aggregates by increasing the costs and makes the use of recycled and secondary materials more viable.
The Aggregates Levy Sustainability Fund uses some of the revenue from the Aggregate Levy to further address the environmental impacts associated with quarrying operations (noise, dust, visual intrusion, loss of amenity and damage to biodiversity).
The Fund is spent through various agencies including the Department for Transport. For 2005/7 ALSF funding is being made available for research to help the aggregates industry identify new operating practices and equipment that reduce the environmental impact of transporting aggregates.
Research
This project will produce a report, a protocol, five case studies and guidance to on-site design.
They will all focus on identifying how to reduce the environmental impact of transporting aggregates and producing the tools to implement the change. It will focus on what this industry can do better with current technology, with different working practices and what innovations to introduce.
The route to implementation is through hearts and minds, so the solutions will need to be commercially viable. A voluntary protocol is planned to facilitate partnering between suppliers and customers to smooth delivery slots through the working day. Five case studies will be developed based on the experiences of real operations using the protocol.
Benefits
If successfully embedded the long-term benefit to the aggregates trucking industry of should be to reduce the environmental impacts of transport by one or more of:
- better industry stakeholder communication,
- industry consideration of alternative vehicle types,
- case studies highlighting the uptake and use of alternative vehicle types,
- uptake of the voluntary protocol,
- better targeted investment.
Timing
This project is expected to start August 2005 and be complete by March 2007.
Contact details
Department for Transport contact point:
Roger Worth 020 7944 4512,
roger.worth@dft.gsi.gov.uk
Contractor details: TBA once the contract is in place
