Circularity in Stone Production: Developing Tailored Indicators to Transform Waste into Sustainable Resources

There are multiple environmental challenges associated with the production of stone, a fundamental material to architectural and construction sectors. The substantial waste generated during extraction and processing stages plays a crucial role in evaluating the circularity and efficiency of resource management within the industry. The production of waste - solid, dust, and slurry - across quarrying, cutting, and finishing processes, accounts for 70% of the extracted materials. Approximately 64% of the total waste generated in the EU in 2020 was classified as mineral waste. Therefore, the inefficiency of the current practices in the stone production chain presents a significant potential to reduce its impact with the repurpose of stone waste into secondary raw materials for other applications as cement-based materials. Compared to other industries such as wood and steel, there is a significant gap in the development of relevant circular economy indicators for the stone industry. To address such limitation, this study proposes a refined selection of existing indicators meeting the specific characteristics and challenges of the stone sector. Future studies for developing new methodologies and tailored indicators to the stone supply chain will help monitor industry inefficiencies, potentially reduce waste generation in different stages of the supply chain, and support the transition to a circular economy.