ARE WE READY FOR CIRCULAR ECONOMY?

MAIN CHALLENGES

  • Avoiding Deconstruction

Buildings are designed to be conserved rather than dismantled in the framework of circularity through ongoing maintenance, repair, and renovation efforts. If the building can provide appropriate structural and sanitary conditions, deconstructing it should be the final choice. Furthermore, once this stage has been reached, a selective dismantling and deconstruction process must be implemented because dismantling an element without damaging it allows it to be reinserted in the circular chain, allowing resources to be better separated and their reuse and recycling to be optimised.


  • Selective Deconstruction

Obtaining secondary materials at the conclusion of a project and keeping them from becoming garbage necessitates deliberate intervention at the deconstruction sites through selective disassembly of building components. Selective deconstruction is a series of operations that aid in the separation and sorting of building parts and materials. "Any producer or holder of construction and demolition waste establishes waste sorting at the source and, where waste is not handled on-site, separate waste collection, particularly for wood, mineral fractions, metal, glass, plastic, and plaster." Environmental sustainability will be determined mostly by the features of the dismantled structure as well as local secondary resource markets.


  • Urban Metabolism and Territorial Diagnosis

The measurement of a territory's inputs (imports), local extraction (local resource production), local circular economy loops (local reuse and recycle loops), outputs (exports), and storage of resources and wastes is implied by urban metabolism. According to stockholders, knowing the flows according to a somewhat precise nomenclature is required to facilitate the development of reuse or recycling channels (finer than inert waste, nonhazardous waste, and hazardous waste). This information on kind and quantity is critical for recognising opportunities in the industry and, as a result, predefining secondary material storage and treatment requirements.


PROS & CONS

CIRCULAR ECONOMY AS A STRATEGY FOR SUSTAINABILITY

Learn about the benefits of the circular economy

PROS

  • Less extraction of virgin raw materials in construction

  • Reduced consumption of fossil fuels.

  • Extending the useful life of products through actions such as

recycling.

  • Decrease in waste generation.

  • Innovation and economic growth.

  • Allows for a change in consumption habits.

  • Greater independence in terms of imports and agility in supply.

  • Creation of new jobs in construction industry.


CONS

  • Lack of regulations governing legal competition among companies.

  • Lack of environmental awareness on the part of suppliers and clients.

  • Economic barriers and access to financing.

  • Technical skills and abilities that are not yet present in the workforce.

  • Presence of waste that is difficult to recycle and transform.

  • Consumer acceptance problems.


Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions

A circular economy uses renewable energy resulting in less pollution caused by fossil fuels. Furthermore, the preferred choice for manufacturing processes would be energy-efficient equipment and non-toxic materials, all which would decrease emissions of greenhouse gases.

Material Cost Saving

Due to reuse and dematerialization in the circular economy model, fewer materials and productions processes are actually needed to deliver functional products. This not only mitigates supply chain risk but could lead to potential cost saving of up to USD 700 billion globally.


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Increased innovation

The process of replacing linear products and systems with circular ones is a creative opportunity that will encourage higher rates of technological development, leading to innovations across material manufacturing, energy production and labour.


Creation of new green industries and jobs

A circular economy emphasizes creating local material loops and shortening supply chains. Furthermore, labour-intensive recycling activities, high-skill remanufacturing, renewable energy and technological development can all present new employment opportunities.

Economic Growth

Lower costs of production, coupled with new revenue streams emerging from circular activities, affects economy-wide supply, demand and prices. The ripple effect across sectors can lead to overall economic growth.

Catogories of Circular Economy Barriers