The European Commission has published a new Circular Economy Action Plan (CEAP) , a key building block of the European Green Deal.

Putting the circular economy in the mainstream of economic activity will make a decisive contribution to achieving climate neutrality by 2050. The key will be to de-couple economic growth from the level of use of resources.

The Action Plan proposes measures along the entire life cycle of products, aiming to ensure that resources are kept and used within the economy for as long as possible. As Executive Vice-President of the European Commission, Frans Timmermans, said: “Today our economy is mostly linear, with only 12% of secondary materials and resources being brought back into the economy…There is huge potential to be exploited both for businesses and consumers”.

Seven key product value chains are identified in the Action Plan: Electronics and IT; Batteries and Vehicles; Packaging; Plastics; Textiles; Construction and Buildings; and Food, Water and nutrients. The seven sectors provide a focussed approach to build a sustainable product framework on an economy-wide spectrum.

The Construction and Buildings value chain accounts for about half of all extracted materials. The sector is responsible for about a third of all the EU’s waste generated. Greenhouse gas emissions from material extraction, manufacturing of construction products and renovation of buildings are estimated at 5-12% of total emissions, varying between EU countries. The Circular Economy Action Plan refers to a recent study of the International Resource Panel (UNEP), which concludes that 80% of these emissions could be cut.

To realise this potential, the Commission will launch a Strategy for a Sustainable Built Environment. This strategy will be broad and link objectives and initiatives related to areas such a climate, energy, circularity, material, waste, skills, digital, biodiversity, pollution etc.

The importance of assessing sustainability over the life cycle of buildings is further emphasised in the Action Plan, by the inclusion of the Level(s) framework. The role of Level(s) to implement life cycle assessment in public procurement is a key example in the Plan. The Level(s) framework’s increasing adoption will be instrumental in the design, commissioning, building, occupation and renovation of buildings. Its lifecycle approach with the use of proven metrics for comparative progress and securing resource efficiency and sustainability benefits, will support the construction sector, building owners and occupiers.

The Action Plan gives an important new impetus to how Level(s) can be used, helping to deliver vital changes towards a circular economy and climate-neutrality.