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Description
The issue is that a consolidated framework for EPD already exists, although they do not necessarily reflect the aspects associated with the circularity of materials and products. The proposed project aims to contribute to the improvement of waste identification, improvement of source separation, improvement of logistics, waste processing and treatment options, process quality, and of monitoring and control. The Circular Buildings project will develop tools to support the design and construction of circular buildings, namely a set of standards for the definition of building material passports, for the definition and calculation of material, water and energy and component efficiency metrics and, finally, for the definition of circularity indicators in EPD.
Summary of project results
The demonstration project thus had the following objectives:
• Implement the calculation tool developed with the aim of evaluating the environmental and economic impacts associated with the reuse and valorization of materials on site and the
waste treatment;
• Characterize the environmental performance and potential for reuse and recovery of a construction product, through a Materials Passport and a DAP.
Although the consortium thus decided that the Póvoa de Varzim Arena Project suited the expected purpose. Taking this into consideration, a new meeting was held on December 10, 2020, between the Councilor of the Chamber of Póvoa de Varzim and the consortium, in order to discuss a proposal developed in view of the suitability of the Arena as a demonstration project. However, on December 4, 2020, the Municipality of Póvoa de Varzim was cited for administrative action initiated by PATRIPOVE - Association for the Defense and Consolidation of Póvoa de Varzim Heritage, aimed at undertaking the work “Requalification of the Bullring – Arena of Póvoa de Varzim ”. Given the lack of response from the Porto Administrative and Fiscal Court, it was necessary to look for an alternative that would allow the achievement of the objectives stipulated during the project execution period. Another project by the Municipal Council of Póvoa de Varzim was identified to demonstrate the tools developed, namely the Remodeling and Expansion project of Escola Básica Dr. Flávio Gonçalves. Meetings to define the scope of the demonstrator project with those responsible for the project took place in May 2021. Following these meetings, it was found that there was availability and interest on the part of the entities involved and that the deadlines for the work were mostly compatible with project deadlines.
There were createde several activities, for starters the project will directly contribute to the objective of the "Environment, Climate Change and Low Carbon Economy" Program of increasing the application of Circular Economy principles in the construction sector, by developing tools aimed at agents in the value chain that promote increased reuse of materials and the reduction in waste production.In particular, the project will directly contribute to the development of standards and good practices and to the review of DAP systems.
The guides in particular will enable greater adoption of the targeted circularity tools (DAP, efficiency indicators and material passports) by value chain actors, from suppliers and builders to users.
The calculation tool will support the decision-making process of the various actors in the value chain, including material manufacturers, construction owners, builders and users, providing them with an estimate of the gains with the implementation of deconstruction or selective demolition, both environmental and economic level, resulting from the adequate management of construction and demolition waste, and mainly, the reuse and recycling of materials and components.
The tools developed are available free of charge on the project website. To access them, the user must simply register, choosing whether they wish to be contacted by the project team to ask for feedback regarding the usefulness and application of the tools developed.
The results of the Circular Buildings project thus established a solid basis for growth and improvement of the proposed tools. The project team is committed to keeping the tools available and updated on the website, undertaking the work of continuous improvement of them based on the contributions received from sector agents. In this context, the role of PTPC and BUILT CoLAB, which has PTPC, FEUP and 3drivers as associates, will be predominant. There is already an expression of interest from both organizations in internalizing some of these outputs in the strategy to promote sustainability in the construction sector.
The project will directly contribute to the objective of the "Environment, Climate Change and Low Carbon Economy" Program of increasing the application of Circular Economy principles in the construction sector, by developing tools aimed at agents in the value chain that prompçote increased reuse of materials and the reduction in waste production.In particular, the project will directly contribute to the development of standards and good practices and to the review of DAP systems.