The buzz word of the moment is ‘sustainability’, but Simon Stainer of West Sussex quarry company Horsham Stone has called on the stone industry to adopt one standard across the industry to clearly establish the sustainability of stone. 

With environmental issues more prevalent among architects and developers as well as consumers, every industry has been affected and has been charged with showing how they are doing their bit, says Simon. “Natural stone is perhaps one of the most sustainable products on the market – it can remain in situ for many decades with very little maintenance.”

But, he says: “At present there are countless standards that companies can choose to show off their credentials. With more and more people choosing sustainable products above anything else, are companies going to lose out for not showing the right eco mark?

“Surely, to ensure future growth in the sector, now is the time for the industry to get together to develop one standard mark that can be used across the board.”

Simon has no doubt about the ecological, ethical and aesthetic advantages of using local stone and says he has seen a marked increase in the popularity of Horsham Stone’s cropped and natural walling stone and garden features and monoliths. Helped by the rising price of imports, the mantra of local products for local markets is developing into a crescendo.

“One thing that we would like to see more of is using Sussex stone in Sussex, Yorkshire stone in Yorkshire, and so on,” says Simon. “It helps to keep costs down and also reduces the carbon footprint.”

He is optimistic about the year ahead. “Taking into account trends we have seen recently – whether that’s more enquiries from councils to use our stone in social housing developments or an increase in monoliths and feature stones to create a unique garden – the stone industry is in a very good place.”

There is more about sustainability in the report on latest developments in the January issue of NSS.