USE OF LOW-IMPACT MATERIALS

1.1. DESCRIPTION This best practice consists in abandoning fossil, non-renewable sources, but also those materials for which extraction, processing and transport have a considerable impact in terms of resource consumption and environmental pollution. Materials from neighbouring production sites or materials whose processing is environmentally sound are to be preferred when constructing or working on buildings; materials with a low carbon footprint and those that have a de-carbonising power themselves also fall into this classification. 1.2. RELEVANCE FOR CIRCULAR BUILDINGS From this practice of circularity comes a notable change in the way products are chosen: in the construction supply chain, a mentality still prevails based exclusively on economic advantage and cost reduction, whereby products with lower environmental performance are preferred if they are cheaper; these products are usually also those from countries where production is cheaper and therefore the impact of transport, which is very significant, must be considered. Circular.buildings Choosing local materials avoids this unnecessary pollution, but more importantly it triggers a chain reaction that can create local industrial ecosystems based on the circular economy. If the products you need are not available locally, choosing those for which you have the least carbon footprint and resource consumption allows you to align with the Reduce circularity principle. 1.3. INNOVATION ASPECTS Many of these products are the result of research and innovation, particularly in the optimisation of the use of resources in the production processes by which they are made. For this reason, the major stakeholders involved in this practice are the manufacturing companies, for which a change in management methods and supply chain philosophy is required. These must also have an interest in creating products with as few harmful emissions as possible, to ensure more possibilities for reuse instead of recycling, especially without health consequences for those involved in the end-of-life phase.

2.1. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS - Prefer materials from local manufacturers when designing - Within a choice between materials with the same guaranteed performance, opt for the lowest environmental impact - Diffuse low-emission alternative materials, such as low-carbon concrete and steel, self-healing concrete or photocatalytic concrete - Consider the impact at all stages of the building's life, especially water and energy consumption - Find out about demolition or decommissioning of buildings in the surroundings to check the opportunity to reuse materials from them - Supply-chain tracking to quantify the benefit of using local materials over others Circular.buildings

3.1. BENEFITS - Frequent correspondence between low-emissivity and likelihood and/or ease of recycling or reuse of materials - Reduction very often also of costs related especially to the transport of materials - Incentive in the development of the regional economy and increased drive for research and innovation by making more and more products available within a small radius - Low impact, also understood as limited emission of harmful substances, with consequent benefits for both building users and workers involved in any dismantling/demolition operations 3.2. COMPLEXITIES - Very often higher cost for materials with less impact than conventional ones