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<p>Cement, concrete and aggregates are essential to modern infrastructure, but drive substantial resource use. We develop an integrated framework of the global concrete aggregates cycle, combining flows, stocks and services into a resource-use intensity metric, defined as resource use per unit of the Human Development Index. Using data for 184 economies from 1990 to 2018, we attribute changes to production- and demand-side drivers. Production-side improvements, such as clinker substitution or efficiency gains in concrete formulation, have yielded only marginal reductions. By contrast, demand-side drivers dominate. Developing economies face large imbalances between inflows and outflows, while industrialized economies show stock saturation and declining turnover. Effective levers include extending building lifespans, reducing material stock intensity through design and urban planning, and enabling reuse and structural intensification. These results highlight the decisive role of demand-side strategies in advancing resource sustainability, while underscoring the importance of linking resource efficiency to social welfare rather than economic output.</p>

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Demand-side factors as dominant drivers of resource efficiency in the concrete aggregates cycle

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2026年6月22日

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  • Zhi Cao,
  • Jia Liu,
  • Xiaoke Su,
  • Jingyang Song,
  • Xiaoyang Zhong,
  • Takuma Watari,
  • Paul Behrens,
  • Tong Zhang

摘要

Cement, concrete and aggregates are essential to modern infrastructure, but drive substantial resource use. We develop an integrated framework of the global concrete aggregates cycle, combining flows, stocks and services into a resource-use intensity metric, defined as resource use per unit of the Human Development Index. Using data for 184 economies from 1990 to 2018, we attribute changes to production- and demand-side drivers. Production-side improvements, such as clinker substitution or efficiency gains in concrete formulation, have yielded only marginal reductions. By contrast, demand-side drivers dominate. Developing economies face large imbalances between inflows and outflows, while industrialized economies show stock saturation and declining turnover. Effective levers include extending building lifespans, reducing material stock intensity through design and urban planning, and enabling reuse and structural intensification. These results highlight the decisive role of demand-side strategies in advancing resource sustainability, while underscoring the importance of linking resource efficiency to social welfare rather than economic output.