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Sustainable buildings. Directorate General for Environment European Commission. Figures and numbers. Construction and use of buildings in the EU amounts for: 1/2 of all our extracted materials 1/2 of all our energy consumption 1/3 of all our water consumption 1/3 of all our waste.
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Sustainable buildings Directorate General for Environment European Commission
Figures and numbers • Construction and use of buildings in the EU amounts for: • 1/2 of all our extracted materials • 1/2 of all our energy consumption • 1/3 of all our water consumption • 1/3 of all our waste
Sustainable buildings • Communication "Resource Efficiency Opportunities in the Building Sector" • Adoption in July 2014 • To promote a more efficient use of resources consumed by new and renovated commercial, residential and public buildings • To reduce the overall environmental impacts throughout the life-cycle of buildings
Two objectives • Influence decision-making (by different actors) along the life-cycle of a building by providingrelevant and comparable information regarding environmental performance, through the development of a framework with core indicators • Increase the use of recycled materials in the construction of buildings, by fostering a better functioning market for recycled and demolition waste (CDW)
Framework - bottlenecks • Lack of reliable, comparable and affordable data, methods and tools on which the operators in the supply chain can analyse and benchmark the environmental performance of different solutions • Absence of guidance on how to incorporate environmental considerations in purchasing decisions makes it difficult for consumers to trust the market and make informed choices
1) Framework – general benefits • Common terminology • Build-up of reliable and comparable data • Increasing awareness of benefits • Effective transfer of good practices • Reduced cost to effectively assess performance • Provide public authorities with relevant data to support policy initiatives • Expand into more countries and markets
1) Framework – specific benefits • Architects, designers, manufacturers of construction products, builders, developers and investors - benefit from competitive advantages • Manufacturersof construction products - cost savings as they only have to provide product information needed for building assessment in one way • Architects and builders - supported via greater information on both product and building level • Developers - more easily be able to compare performance of projects • Investors, property owners and insurers - able to improve the allocation of capital and to integrate environmental risk into their decisions
Framework – • indicator areas to investigate • Total energy use • Material use • Durabilityof construction products • Design for deconstruction • Managementof construction as well as demolition waste (CDW) • Recycled content in construction materials • Recyclability and reusability of construction materials and products • Waterused by buildings • The use intensity of (mostly public) buildings • Indoorcomfort
1) Framework - features • Flexible– to be integrated in existing assessment schemes or used on its own • Comprehensible – inclusion of guidance on its implementation and use of indicators • Useful – to provide relevant comparable data, also converting technical indicators into financial info • Free – to be used in decision-making by different actors and in policy-setting at various levels
1) Framework – future steps • Collaborative process – cooperate with stakeholders and Member States • Two year timeline for first set of indicators, and a roadmap for following stages • Build on existing work – technical standards, certification schemes, research projects, developments at international level
2) Market for CDW - bottlenecks (I) • Cost externalization – environmental damage costsdo not necessarily show up in landfill fees or in cost of primary materials • Split incentives – costs of dismantling, separation and processing waste is born at the demolition phase while the potential benefits from using recycled material accrue at the production phase
2) Market for CDW - bottlenecks (II) • Market uncertainty – demolition companies face uncertainty regarding demand and construction production manufacturers face uncertainty regarding supply • Markets do not develop economies of scale - the amount of recycled materials does not correspond to the potential demand from construction products companies • Lagging technology – technologies enabling recycled materials that meet all the technical, safety and environmental requirements for construction products are sometimes still lacking • Hard to verify performance – certification attesting that recycled materials meet all requirements sometimes lacking
2) Market for CDW - benefits • Environmental benefits – reduction of natural resource depletion; less landfilling and backfilling of waste; lower rate of emissions • Economic benefits – lower prices for recycled materials; savings in terms of energy • Employment opportunities – job growth in deconstruction, sorting and recycling of construction materials
2) Market for CDW – future steps (I) • Promote best practice and collaborate with Member States to divert CDW from landfilling and to integrate external environmental cost in price of virgin material • Explore measures to ensure that recycled materials meet necessary quality requirements • Explore how benchmarks for content of recycled material via e.g. GPP and environmental management schemes can stimulate demand
2) Market for CDW – future steps (II) • Study specific waste streams of CDW to identify opportunities for the valorisation of CDW • Develop tools and guidelines for assessment of buildings prior to demolition and renovation to ensure optimal use of CDW • Support R&D and demonstration projects in areas such as • recycling and production of construction materials from CDW; • design for deconstruction, recyclability audits, separation techniques; • incentivising producers to use recycled material; • collaborative schemes between demolition and construction product sectors aiming at sharing costs and benefits