Ihe building sector generates approximately 46 million tonnes of waste annually, or one and a half times the production of household waste in France, according to the Ministry of Ecological Transition. But only 40% to 60% of waste from new construction is currently recycled.
To give a decisive boost to the recycling of these materials, a major change will take place in 2023. Professionals in the building sector now benefit from the gradual recovery of their sorted waste free of charge, financed by approved eco-organizations via an eco -contribution on products placed on the market.
We can only welcome the implementation of this system, which goes in the direction of history. Preserving resources, protecting our environment, boosting the economic and industrial development of territories, creating jobs that cannot be relocated, reducing waste and waste: the circular economy is an effective and competitive response to the contemporary challenges we are collectively facing.
But the virtuous path represented by the massification of the circular economy goes beyond the building sector alone: public works also have a major role to play. In this sector, the upgrading of construction materials is already a relatively advanced practice, since, according to the Ministry of Ecology, 76% of inert waste (concrete, tiles, bricks, asphalt aggregates, cuttings, etc.) from public works sites are directly recovered or reused, according to the prefiguration study of the sector with extended responsibility for producers, products and construction materials of the building sector, published by the French Environment and Energy Management Agency in 2021.
Change of look
However, given the large volumes of materials used in construction, the margins for improvement in terms of recycling appear enormous. To trigger this transition in the field, it is now a matter of changing perceptions and behaviors, thinking about this transition methodically, to tackle several obstacles.
First observation, the use of recycled materials is not yet fully accepted. It seems fundamental to change our outlook on products from the circular economy, which, as far as construction materials are concerned, offer the same rigorous guarantees in terms of quality and traceability. Both public and private contractors have a prescribing role to play here, by including in their calls for tenders provisions aimed at requiring them to be used.
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