The clay pit at W H Collier is classed as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). This is due to the uniquely important Pleistocene sediments, which have yielded a continuous pollen record through the entire Hoxnian Interglacial period.
Our active quarry forms a very important part of England’s geological resource. This is because the quarrying process has exposed vertical sections of clay not normally visible in a natural state.
Working with a material forged by nature over millenia and nurtured in the uniquely important protected environment of our historic brickworks at Marks Tey gives us a special awareness of our responsibility to the environment.
We are especially proud that our principal raw material is quarried on-site keeping our road miles to a minimum and allowing us to ensure that the process is completed with due sensitivity to our scientifically important environment. Our workforce lives in the direct neighborhood also keeping our travel footprint down.
Renewable resources such as straw and timber are used for packaging and we have reduced our use of shrink-wrapping our pallets in order to minimise our use of single-use plastics.
Unlike many sellers, we have no minimum or fixed order size which means you can reduce waste by ordering exactly the amount you need. view our Environmental Policy
Dr D L Schreve, Royal Holloway University
GOLD AWARD – Essex Minerals Site Awards 2018
Our Environmental Management System is independently inspected annually and recertified every 3 years to assure that we meet the rigorous environmental standards of ISO 14001:2015. This certification covers both our extraction of clay and our production of clay bricks. (view ISO 14001 Certificate)
There is no getting away from the fact that it takes a lot of heat to bake a brick but their very long life (average usable life 500 years!) and ease of reuse make them a relatively sustainable building material. Brick structures in the UK are rated A+ by the Building Research Establishments (BRE) Green Guide.
Furthermore, based on data supplied by members of the Brick Development Association, the UK clay brick is the first building product to have achieved an Environmental Product Declaration awarded by the BRE Centre for Sustainable Products with an Ecopoint rating of just 1.07 cradle to gate (BRE). (see certificate)