Cooperation for more circular economy

The demolition of old buildings produces large quantities of construction waste every year. But not all waste is the same: The buildings contain valuable raw materials that can be reused thanks to innovative and proven recycling methods. A working group on the topic of building materials recycling, which is moderated by Bayern Innovativ as part of the Network Innovative Solid Construction (NiM) , now deals with the question of how recovery and recycling rates can be further increased.

"For years now, it has been observed that some building materials are in short supply and landfills are becoming increasingly full. That's why it's important to recycle as much construction waste as possible in a sensible way and with the highest possible quality," says Dr. Eva Halsch, project manager focusing on sustainability at Bayern Innovativ. To ensure that this succeeds even better in Bavaria in the future, the working group "Opportunities and Limits of Recycling in Solid Construction" was set up in November 2020, in which she and her colleague Dr. Borris Haupt are participating.

In order to shed light on the topic holistically, the working group has an interdisciplinary membership: waste disposal companies, building materials manufacturers, institutes from research and science, associations, the Chamber of Architects and players from public administration are involved. The working group is primarily concerned with the following questions:

• How can the already high recovery and recycling rates sensibly be further increased?
• Which recycling routes offer the greatest benefit for the environment?
• Where are the technical, economic and ecological limits of recycling?

The participants also want to explore the extent to which digitization in construction can help to record and coordinate material flows and requirements in such a way that recycled construction materials are used in the appropriate place. "An important goal of the working group is therefore to create an initial data basis on various topics related to building materials recycling and to derive further steps from this," says Dr. Halsch.

Working group benefits from projects and studies

In its work, the working group on construction materials recycling can build on findings from the Cross-Cluster project "Circular Economy in the Construction Industry" , among others. The project was handled by the Environmental Cluster Bavaria, the Cluster Energy Technology and the Cluster New Materials (both located at Bayern Innovativ) and investigated the energy- and resource-efficient recycling of mineral construction waste. Among other things, the project participants addressed the question of why recycling potential is not better exploited.

According to Dr. Halsch, there are a number of reasons for this: "To date, the technical recycling options have not been fully exploited. In addition, recycled building materials do not yet have the same acceptance as primary building materials - and this despite the fact that their quality and harmlessness are confirmed by quality seals." This acceptance must be increased, for example through information campaigns and training. Public clients could also contribute to more circular economy by setting an example.

In addition, an international comparison with the Netherlands was drawn up by experts from Bayern Innovativ in a study on circular economy in southern Germany . The study was commissioned by the Netherlands Enterprise Agency and will be published in June 2019.

Building materials recycling working group: Here's what happens next

The building materials recycling working group is still at the beginning of its activities. After a kick-off meeting in November 2020, a workshop was held in February 2021 to define fields of action for the working group. In the coming months, the participants want to devote themselves primarily to data collection at the regional level. In addition, smaller demonstration projects are to be launched, in line with the motto "just try it out." However, the long-term goal of the activities is already clear: to contribute to more circular economy in solid construction .