Towards a Circular Economy

The Netherlands’ Progress Towards a Circular Economy

Amsterdam, The Netherlands / istockphoto.com, bloodua

The Netherlands is ramping up plans to achieve a fully circular economy by 2050. This means the country will reimagine existing materials, reduce the extraction of raw materials, and generate “as little waste as possible.”

Progress Towards a Circular Economy

At this year’s Greenbuild conference in Washington, D.C., Sandra Onwijn, acting director for the transition to a circular economy at the Netherlands Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management, outlined how the transformation is progressing and what their experience can teach other countries and industries.

“It won’t be easy but we owe it to future generations. We need to cut carbon and protect biodiversity. We need to improve water and air quality. And we need to protect material supplies,” she said.

Key Goals for Achieving a Circular Economy

• Use less raw materials overall by reducing extraction and increasing sharing and reuse.
• Ensure materials and products last longer and are more intensively used through repairing, repurposing, and refurbishing.
• Increase recycleability, recycled material content, and the substitution of bio-based materials.

“Worldwide, the building sector accounts for 50 percent of raw material use, 40 percent of energy use, 30 percent of water use, and 40 percent of waste, and more than a third of greenhouse gas emissions,” Onwijn said.

To reduce the impacts of the building sector in the Netherlands, the government has created new building and infrastructure material performance standards, which they continue to make more stringent. The standards call for ensuring the long lifespan of buildings by design and using renewable and recycled materials.

The Dutch government aims for every material to have its own “passport” that shows its origin, production process, and potential for reuse. The reuse journey of materials will be continuously tracked.

Other strategies include procuring circular products and establishing public-private partnerships to promote circularity in different industries. The Netherlands has also banned the dumping of many types of materials in landfills to phase out the linear economy.

Collaboration Towards a Circular Economy in the U.S.

While the U.S. government is further behind in creating policies that encourage a circular economy, progress is being made in the built environment sector. Efforts are underway to reduce embodied carbon emissions, which are produced during the extraction, manufacturing, transportation, and installation of materials.

A coalition called the Embodied Carbon Harmonization and Optimization (ECHO) Project, which includes ASLA and other organizations, aims to establish consistent methodologies for reporting and measuring embodied carbon at the whole building and project scale in the U.S.

The need for universal embodied carbon measurements is evident as California recently updated its building regulations to include embodied carbon requirements, and other cities and states are expected to follow suit. The Biden-Harris administration has also allocated $100 million in grant funding for the development of environmental product declarations (EPDs) to collect more accurate data on embodied carbon and expand market access for low-carbon construction materials.

Decarbonizing Concrete

Concrete production is a significant contributor to greenhouse gas emissions. Efforts are being made to reduce the embodied carbon of concrete by mixing in higher percentages of slag or fly ash. However, achieving 100 percent emission reductions is challenging.

New technologies are being developed to address the emissions from concrete production. These include using electric furnaces powered by renewable energy and alternative cements that sequester carbon. Carbon capture is also being explored as a tool to reduce emissions.

Collaboration and investment in materials and manufacturing innovation, as well as the harmonization of embodied carbon accounting systems, are crucial for achieving a circular economy and reducing the environmental impact of the built environment.

SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

1. Which SDGs are addressed or connected to the issues highlighted in the article?

• SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production
• SDG 13: Climate Action
• SDG 15: Life on Land
• SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals

2. What specific targets under those SDGs can be identified based on the article’s content?

• Target 12.2: By 2030, achieve the sustainable management and efficient use of natural resources.
• Target 12.5: By 2030, substantially reduce waste generation through prevention, reduction, recycling, and reuse.
• Target 13.2: Integrate climate change measures into national policies, strategies, and planning.
• Target 15.2: By 2020, promote the implementation of sustainable management of all types of forests.
• Target 17.17: Encourage and promote effective public, public-private, and civil society partnerships.

3. Are there any indicators mentioned or implied in the article that can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets?

Yes, the following indicators can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets:

• Indicator 12.2.1: Material footprint, material footprint per capita, and material footprint per GDP.
• Indicator 12.5.1: National recycling rate, tons of material recycled.
• Indicator 13.2.1: Number of countries that have integrated climate change measures into policy, strategies, and planning.
• Indicator 15.2.1: Progress towards sustainable forest management.
• Indicator 17.17.1: Amount of United States dollars committed to public-private and civil society partnerships.

SDGs, Targets, and Indicators Table

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Source: dirt.asla.org

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