Currently, buildings are responsible for almost half of European energy consumption, and the construction sector accounts for over a third of the EU’s greenhouse gas emissions as well as its waste generation. The management of construction and demolition waste across Europe remains a major issue. While reported recovery rates of construction and demolition waste appear high—over 70%—this includes high levels of low-grade recycling like backfilling, which wouldn't be considered recycling at all within the circular economy. Furthermore, the dominant construction model in Europe is highly linear—in other words, based on the extraction, processing and eventual disposal of raw materials. 

Circular procurement models are a priority focus for improvement in Europe, across system levels (for example, renting systems and supplier take-back systems), supplier levels (repairability of standard products and design for disassembly) and product levels (use of recycled materials in products and total cost of ownership). In addition, legislative or policy-based tools, such as the issuing of deconstruction and renovation permits and licenses, will become crucial in ensuring construction waste is reused appropriately rather than downcycled. To successfully develop a market for recycled building materials, landfill restrictions—such as bans, incentives, and tax-based disincentives—will be highly impactful, as well as policies that limit the use of virgin materials.

If applied in the built environment, circular economy strategies could have a huge impact on competitiveness, spending and job creation—nonetheless, the construction industry hardly uses secondary materials. The report concludes that insufficient legislation and a lack of standardisation across the industry make recycling construction and demolition waste more difficult—and thus the solutions outlined above must be implemented to see significant improvements. While the circular transition in the built environment falls primarily on the shoulders of the private sector (manufacturers, construction firms, product sellers and recycling firms), the public sector has an important role to play in guiding their actions through facilitation and regulation.