INDUSTRY
24 % direct emissions in Switzerland
Industrial plant in Basel
Photo: Adobe Stock
Our home furnishings, vehicles, medicines, clothing, smartphones, etc. are manufactured industrially. This requires raw materials and energy-intensive processes that cause significant greenhouse gas emissions.
Industrial products are essential to our modern lives, but their manufacture is often not wholly sustainable. By importing such products, we contribute to greenhouse gas emissions in the countries where they are manufactured (indirect emissions). When analysing the greenhouse gases caused by a product, its entire life cycle must be taken into account. This means that both direct and indirect emissions must be considered.
WHAT DOES NET ZERO LOOK LIKE IN THE INDUSTRIAL SECTOR?
- The high energy requirements for raw material extraction, manufacturing, transport, storage, use and disposal of products are covered by CO₂-neutral, renewable energies.
- Industrial processes for heating and cooling emit little or no greenhouse gases (e.g., use of heat pumps with sustainable refrigerants).
- Material cycles are closed as far as possible (circular economy); products are designed in accordance with eco-design standards.
- The largest sources of emissions in industrial processes are identified and their greenhouse gas emissions are minimised in order to achieve emission reduction targets.
- Residual emissions are captured and stored before they enter the atmosphere (carbon capture and storage, CCS).
- Supply chains are as short as possible, as procurement, production and consumption take place locally (e.g., use of recycled raw materials), provided this leads to lower emissions.
NECESSARY SOCIAL AND POLITICAL MEASURES
- Governments introduce incentives and measures that make low-emission processes cheap and accessible. Highly emission-intensive processes and products may be banned.
- Emission costs are reflected in the product price (internalisation of external costs).
- Emissions trading systems set clear net zero targets.
- Industrial emissions are made transparent through clear monitoring, reporting and verification (e.g., through greenhouse gas inventories).
ADDITIONAL BENEFITS FOR SOCIETY
- Less industrial pollution leads to improved air, water and soil quality.
- Investments in low-emission industrial technologies promote job creation and innovation.
- Efficient use of resources and circular models protect finite raw material reserves and reduce pressure on ecosystems.
HOW CAN YOU CONTRIBUTE?
- Consume more consciously (moderation): when less is produced, fewer emissions are generated.
- Consume more sustainably: buy from companies that reuse materials, e.g., second-hand products.
- Buy eco-designed products: this contributes to the circular economy and ensures that raw materials can be recycled.
GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS THROUGHOUT THE LIFE CYCLE OF A PRODUCT
replacing ‘cradle to gate to grave’ with ‘cradle to cradle’ in order to reduce emissions
Graphic: Green Element (modif.)
CAPTURE AND STORAGE OF INDUSTRIAL CO₂ EMISSIONS
In some industries, it is not possible to avoid emissions completely. To address this, new processes are being developed to capture CO₂ and store it underground or in products before it enters the atmosphere.
Photo: Léon Frey (focusTerra)
CAN CONCRETE SAVE THE CLIMATE?
8% of global CO₂ emissions are caused by the production of cement (an important component of concrete) – around three times as much as global air traffic. Swiss researchers and companies are also working on sustainable concrete that generates less CO₂ – or can store it.
Photo: Adobe Stock
EMISSION REDUCTION IN THE METAL INDUSTRY
The annual production of approximately 2 billion tonnes of metal is responsible for around 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions. Scrap recycling reduces emissions (by up to 74% for iron, for example). Some plants are also testing lower-emission approaches to ore processing.
Photo: Adobe Stock
EU DIGITAL PRODUCT PASSPORT (DPP)
The digital product passport is part of the EU regulation for the eco-design of sustainable products (ESPR, 2024). Companies are obliged to provide detailed information about their products in digital form (e.g., with a QR code or chip).
Photo: Adobe Stock
NO PLANNED OBSOLESCENCE
Planned obsolescence, e.g., of appliances, which is common in industry, is to be restricted. This is to be achieved through measures such as laws for longer guarantees and the right to repair. In Switzerland, planned obsolescence (designing products to have a shorter lifespan) can be punished. The EU is planning similar measures.
Photo: Adobe Stock
Exhibits
Furniture made from renewable raw materials
Hocker Papillon
The Papillon stool consists of two identical parts made from Swiss Douglas fir wood. It can be effortlessly assembled in a single step and without any tools. Although Douglas fir originates from North America, it has established itself in Switzerland as a climate-resilient tree species. It grows quickly, is tolerant of heat and drought, and is therefore particularly well suited for sustainable forestry in the face of climate change. In addition, wood stores CO₂ throughout its lifetime, acting as a natural carbon reservoir.
For each piece of furniture produced, a tree is replanted in a local forest; through the website, visitors can view the location of the new tree, making reforestation and the circular economy directly tangible.
Building elements made of artificial sandstone
Sandstone 2.0
Sand and gravel are among the most widely used raw materials in the construction industry, and demand for them continues to grow. In gravel extraction, they are obtained in different grain sizes and then washed and filtered at the plant. Depending on the mining area, large amounts of gravel washing sludge and fine sand are produced in the process. Until now, these by-products have remained unused, yet they offer great potential as alternative building materials.
For the exhibition, these by-products were used to create hand-formed weight plates for the individual exhibition modules. They resemble sandstone and consist of fine sand, salt, and a plant-based binder. Their use is sustainable, as they not only make use of sand as an original waste material but can also be further recycled in the future.