Roadmap to a
Resource Efficient Europe
-and what about buildings?Josefina Lindblom
European Commission – DG environment
Scheme of my presentation
1. A resource constraint world
2. What is Resource Efficiency?
3. European policy context
4. The Roadmap to a Resource Efficient Europe
5. What about buildings?
A resource constraint world
ONLY ONE EARTH
World Footprint = 1.3 earths
Growth of the World Economy
1950 2010
2050
Increased globalization
Source: Eurostat Comext Statistics, EEA 2010, The European Environment, State and Outlook 2010 : Thematic Assessment – Material Resources and Waste
Growing Resource Use
Source: EEA 2010 derived from SERI GLOBAL 2000, Friends of the Earth Europe (2009)
What is Resource Efficiency?
raw materials:minerals-fuels-biomass
ecosystems–biodiversity
– water –land and soils –
air – marine resources
Resource Efficiency: Doing more with less
Sustainable management and use of
resources throughout their life cycle
Producing more value while living,
producing and consuming within the
physical and biological limits of the
planet
What can resource efficiency bring to the economy and society?
New business opportunities (innovation, eco-industries), new skilled jobs
Competitiveness and cost savings for European businesses
Better food/water/energy security
Reducing environmental impacts and avoiding depletion of natural resources
(Source: Wuppertal Institute)
Market failures – environmental and social costs not
considered, decisions not factoring in the long-term
Policy failures –inconsistent market signals,
uncertainty, slow reform of policy (e.g. subsidies)
“Lock-ins” and system effects – Infrastructure,
consumption patterns and business models
What to do? Breaking down barriers
European policy context
EU 2020 Strategy
Adopted in 2010: the course for EU economy for the next 10 years and beyond – 3 main priorities
Smart Growth – focus on education, research Sustainable Growth – low carbon, resource
efficiency
Inclusive Growth – high-employment, delivering economic, social, territorial cohesion
7 Flagship initiatives, incl. “Resource Efficient Europe”
Communication January 2011
Roadmap September 2011
The Roadmap to aResource Efficient Europe
Communication “The Roadmap to a Resource Efficient Europe
Adopted on 20 September 2011
Outline the key challenges and opportunities:
“A fundamental transformation within a generation”
Policy changes to tackle resource inefficiencies for
the EU, Member State, Regions and for business
The main lines of the Roadmap
Three time lines long term 2050 vision (short-termism) milestones for 2020 actions to be taken now
Three action lines Transforming the economy Addressing natural capital Tackling key sectors
Accompanied by governance and monitoring
Transforming the economy Address bottlenecks and barriers to resource efficiency
Get the prices right (reflect environm. externalities)
Tackling inefficient subsidies
Shifting from labour to resource taxation
Stimulate innovative forward thinking
Boost resource efficiency in production, consumption and waste management
Translation to economic sectors & new business models
Disposal
Design
Collection
Reuse, Recycling, Recovery
Manufacturing
Distribution
Use
Natural Resources
Waste & Recycling
Smarter Consumption
Leaner Production
Better Products
Eco-innovation
Natural Resources
Policies across the Life-Cycle of Products
Poor performance
Good performance
1. Companies & production
2. Products
3. Demand & consumption
4. End of life
Reduce resource use and limit environmental impact of production and consumption
Sustainable consumption and production
Tackling key resources
Ecosystem services
Biodiversity
Minerals and metals
Water
Air
Land and soils
Marine resources
Interactions
Prevention
Recycling
Recovery
Disposal
Re-use
Turning waste into a resource
PREVENTION
REUSE
RECYCLING
RECOVERY
DISPOSAL
Turning waste into a resource
Tackling key sectors
Food
Reducing food waste and tackling animal proteins
Addressing phosphorus
Mobility
Resource efficiency objectives in transport
Housing / buildings
Tackling key sectors: buildings Facts
42 % of our final energy consumption
> 50 % of all extracted materials – most of them minerals
33 % of waste
Milestones by 2020 Life-cycle approach applied for all new and renovated buildings
Existing building stock “resource efficient” refurbished at a rate of 2 % per year
70 % of construction and demolition waste recycled.
Governance
Implement at all levels – EU, Member States, regions,
internationally (RIO+20) …
Concerted action with business, scientists and society
Engage with stakeholders to set targets and use appropriate
indicators by 2013
Using initially “resource productivity” together with land, water
and carbon indicators
National resource efficiency strategies
Opportunities for business
By 2050 we need a 4-10x increase in resource efficiency (World Business Council for Sustainable Development)
$3.5 trillion gains in improving resource efficiency (McKinsey)
New businesses – first mover advantages Security against future price fluctuations
Winners are those who prepare for resource constraints in a predictable and controlled way,
before shortages and price hikes hit
What about buildings?
Tackling key sectors: buildings Fact
Construction and buildings impact our environment Some initial thoughts
How to apply the life-cycle approach for buildings? How can the component and system levels complement each other? How can we trigger more information on resource use/environmental performance? How do we recognize a green building, throughout Europe? What would be necessary to step up the “resource efficient refurbishment” rate to
2% per year? Do we know enough about the existing stock? Resource inventories? New and better ways to get same or higher functionality with less resource
intensive materials, new technologies and approaches to design? Operational vs embedded energy? Urban mining and reuse in higher value applications than today? Closing loops? Increasing space per person, does it matter?
http://http://ec.europa.eu/environment/resource_efficiencyec.europa.eu/environment/resource_efficiency/ /