Building contractors are committed to the circular economy
Twelve major public and private building contractors are committed to sustainable construction. To this end, they have signed the "Charter for Circular Construction". The aim is to reduce non-renewable materials and indirect emissions.
The construction and operation of buildings and infrastructures account for around half of Switzerland’s total demand for raw materials. At the same time, one third of CO2 emissions and over 80 per cent of waste are generated here. Twelve of the largest public and private building contractors want to remedy this situation, the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Testing and Research(Empa) informs in a press release. Together with Allreal, AXA Investment Managers Schweiz AG, the Construction Department of the Canton of Zurich, the Federal Office for Buildings and Logistics, the Building Department of the City of Zurich, Post Immobilien Management und Services AG, Swiss Prime Site, Swiss Life Asset Management AG, UBS Fund Management (Switzerland) AG, Zug Estates and Zurich Invest AG, Empa has signed the “Charter for Circular Construction“.
The charter aims to promote the circular economy in the Swiss construction industry. To this end, the aim is to reduce the use of non-renewable primary raw materials to half of the total mass. Indirect greenhouse gas emissions are to be recorded in a first step and then greatly reduced. To this end, the Charter partners want to develop innovative solutions. As examples, the communication mentions renovating instead of building new, building for the long term, reducing the use of materials and reusing raw materials.
The twelve initial signatories of the charter together underwrite around 4 billion francs of building construction investments annually, Empa explains. Other building owners are invited to join the charter and its goals.