The Embodied Biodiversity Impacts of Construction Materials

Research Director: Eva MacNamara, Lead Author: Lottie Macnair, Contributing Authors: Pete Winslow, Bruce Martin, Ailsa Roberts, Rachel De Matei

This report presents the results of a 2023 study carried out by Expedition Engineering, supported by the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) Research and Development Enabling Fund, into the embodied biodiversity impacts of construction materials.

The project aimed to equip those working in the built environment with a qualitative understanding of how biodiversity is impacted throughout the lifecycles of the materials used by the construction industry in the UK.

The work has been enabled and reviewed by the ICE’s Research and Development group. We would like to thank the ICE for supporting this research and its dissemination.

This research has also been enabled by extensive engagement with the construction industry supply chain, including engineers, contractors, architects, infrastructure providers, and charities, as well as specialist biodiversity experts.

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