The European Green Deal COM (2019) 640 final Extract of policies, initiatives and communications in the sphere of the EU Green Deal related to construction This communication of the European Commission describes the actions to achieve a transformation of the European society and economy to take place until 2030 and 2050. It is focused on…
Product Data Templates & BIM All activities in the last years experienced a transformation triggered by the increasing access to data and software applications. Construction was not an exception and a digital environment called Building Information Model (BIM) was created. The main challenge of digitalisation in construction is interoperability. Software applications must be able to…
EU framework for digital building logbooks A digital building logbook is a common repository for relevant building data. It facilitates transparency, trust, informed decision making and information sharing within the construction sector, among building owners and occupants, financial institutions and public authorities. Information obtained from construction products is only part of the data expected to…
EPR applied to construction products Extended Producer Responsibility is a transfer of financial and / or physical responsibility for management of waste products from governments and consumers to the producer, as defined in a policy instrument. Its goal is incentivise manufacturers to consider durability, reparability and end of life as part of the product design….
Waste Framework Directive 2008/98/EC This directive establishes the legislative framework for the handling of waste in the European Union. It includes the definition of key concepts such as waste, recovery and disposal and puts in place the essential requirements for the management of waste. A fit for all solution is not applicable to construction demolition…
Sustainable Products Initiative – better regulation portal This legislative initiative is intended to establish sustainability principles to regulate: Durability, reusability, upgradability and reparability Presence of hazardous chemicals Energy and resource efficiency; Recycled content Remanufacturing and high-quality recycling; Carbon and environmental footprints Digitalisation of product information, including digital passports and tagging Linking high sustainability product performance…
EU ETS & Effort Sharing Regulation (EU) 2018/842 The Emission Trade System (ETS) sets a cap on the total amount of greenhouse gases that can be emitted by certain sectors. The cap is reduced over time so that emissions go down, by improving the efficiency of the activities covered. Within the cap, companies receive or…
A Renovation Wave for Europe – greening our buildings, creating jobs, improving lives COM (2020) 662 final This initiative is not a legislative proposal. However, it gives clear indications of the willingness of the EC to move on issues like climate change and reducing greenhouse gas emissions in line with the Green Deal. The seven…
Circular economy action plan COM(2020) 98 final EC has presented a lot of initiatives dealing with circular economy. Initially the focus was on resource extraction and waste, but the topic was enhanced progressively to cover dangerous substances, resource efficiency and lastly a complete action plan dealing with the goals of the Green Deal. The last…
EU Construction and Demolition Waste Protocol and Guidelines The European Commission published non-binding guides as a recommendation to the industry on how to address demolition and Construction Demolition Waste (CDW). The documents are: Construction and Demolition Waste Management Protocol Guidelines for the waste audits before demolition and renovation works of buildings Both documents were translated…