What does Circular Economy mean for Construction?
Watch the episode on YouTube right here!
Nothing is impossible when it’s inevitable.
Certainly the future is inevitable. And certainly this phrase has been used somewhere by someone else before. Only because it makes sense.
We created a podcast episode: “What does Circular Economy mean for Construction?” with Ramboll Director of Strategic Sustainability Consulting, Patrick Moloney. Join us when we’re discussing circular economy.
Looking towards the future, we are looking towards change.
But how can we embrace the opportunities that we believe exist out there?
That’s the question, Patrick helps his clients unravel.
This involves the transition to a circular economy. But the concept of a circular economy can become very abstract. It may not seem straightforward. Especially not, when you’re looking across multiple silos in your organization.
You have to look at all the different perspectives and not only your own.
In the following article, we’ll discuss:
- What is circular economy?
- How is it different from sustainability?
- What’s the future going to look like?
So… in order to look at the different perspectives, we need to understand the circular economy itself.
What is circular economy?
Circular economy may seem like an abstract term. And it shouldn’t be.
It’s about materials.
It’s basic.
It’s measurable.
But we tend to get confused about the definition. Because there are multiple definitions, paradigms and schools saying the same thing.
Patrick has 6 core themes he believes defines circular economy.
Patrick’s 6 themes in circular economy:
1. Designing out waste:
90% of waste comes from the Design Studio (particularly from Architects and Engineers). What they decide to do determines the amount of waste in the process. And we need to be better at designing out waste within the industry.
2. Lifetime extension and durability: We can simply maximize value by keeping stuff in the loop as long as possible.
3. Use waste as a resource: There’s a phrase saying: “Waste is only waste if you waste it”.
4. Facilitate regeneration: Don’t necessarily be regenerative (that can be too far a stretch), but facilitate the regeneration and particularly in the Building Sector and infrastructure.
5. Systems thinking: Understanding the value chains, the relationships and the interconnectivity becomes crucial.
6. Value creation and capture: Economy is the operative word. It’s getting lost, but get back to your definition. And with it a sustainability agenda.
Ask someone else than Patrick and they might come up with 8 or 10 themes.
According to Patrick, these themes all say the same thing, and that’s why he focuses on the 6 simple and clear steps within the definition of circular economy.
And now, the big question: How does it differ from sustainability?
How is it different from sustainability?
Circular economy and sustainability are linked together. Of course they are! But it’s also more than that.
There is an interconnectivity between resources and circular economy. If you use climate as a classic example, 45% of all greenhouse gas emissions come from how we extract, and how we produce. 90% of biodiversity loss is from the way we extract and manufacture.
So the point is that our behavior with materials has a domino effect.
And that’s also why sustainability is linked with circular economy.
Because sustainability is also an economic element. There’s value in it. You can waste materials. It has a cost. And it’s measurable. We need a value proposition in order to escalate sustainability.
That’s why the economic element and policy are important parts of sustainability.
Without the legislative pull, it won’t happen.
It has to start at the top of the food chain in order for it to be a possibility for the industry. People will begin to react downstream – not the other way around.
We’re already seeing some regulations coming through in this area.
Regulations like:
– The Circular Economy Taxonomy.
– The Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation.
And it’s also crucial to mention that the digital passport of products will become a massive enabler for the future.
So… what about this future?
What’s the future going to look like?
The future will look different, from how we know the Construction Industry today.
The economy will evolve to adapt to whatever it’s in. Either you evolve to fit what that future looks like, or you go out of business. In the years coming, we will have more focus on sustainability, but we need to think about the economy too.
In 2030 we will probably fully understand the connectivity between these elements.
In order to get there, we should start looking at circular economy as a recycled aggregate.
It’s not sexy, but it reflects the circular economy. Alternatively, as Patrick’s colleague from the UK once suggested, we should call it “materials economy”. No matter what, in order to understand it better we need to create new pictures of the circular economy.
The coming years will be disruptive years in struggling with this legislation and understanding what it means.
If you want to be prepared for the future, start looking into how you can design and reuse your materials over and over again.
That’ll be of value to the environment, but also for the economy and your own organization.