Building better with a circular economy
If we’re to tackle the climate crisis, decarbonising construction is the place to start. Buildings and infrastructure are responsible for over 40% of the UK’s carbon emissions, produce over 60% of the UK’s waste, and consume approximately 50% of
all extracted materials globally.
That’s why our Energy Institute researchers are exploring the extent to which the circular economy could meet the UK building industry’s needs – with the end goal being zero new material extractions, zero emissions and zero waste.
BuildZero, a new £6 million project funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, will develop a detailed vision of more sustainable building practices.
In a circular economy, materials are kept at the highest value possible. So rather than demolishing and constructing new buildings from scratch, retrofitting and repurposing to extend a building’s lifespan would become the norm.
The project will assess the extent to which the vision for a circular economy is achievable at regional and national level, and will provide a platform for demonstrating these solutions at scale.
BuildZero will culminate in a range of demonstrator projects, interactive tools, detailed strategies and ultimately a series of pathways to achieve this vision.
“This funding is an exciting opportunity to explore if, and under what timeframes, a circular economy can be achieved for the UK’s building stock, while meeting essential societal needs,” explains project lead Dr Danielle Densley Tingley. “We will be working in close collaboration with industry partners to support changes in practice and help catalyse the shift to a widespread circular economy in the built environment.”
