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Climate package minister Jetten does not encourage

Climate package minister Jetten does not stimulate

We are pleased that Minister Jetten's package brings the climate goals for 2030 into sight. Clear, sustainable standards and pollution pricing contribute substantially to the transition to a sustainable economy. Companies now know better where they stand. 

Unfortunately, however, the package pays too little attention to the circular economy - and that while the transition to climate neutrality and a circular economy are so closely linked, as Jetten himself finally said in his parliamentary letter. In fact, only circular plastics and bio-based building receive attention in the climate package. While Jetten talks about 'extra money for scaling up circular innovations', in the concrete measures we read mainly a continuation of already existing policy and subsidies with insufficient resources. 

Achieving a fully circular economy by 2050 requires bigger steps and a huge acceleration. And that is even more difficult when you know that no or little budget has been allocated for it in the National Circular Economy Program. 

Design by Opportunity

Besides the government, of course, the industry has a role to play. Designers and builders can already work towards this circular economy. For example by design by opportunity: they can explore in the environment which reusable building materials are available and take that as a starting point for the design. Think of local building cycle companies, residual materials from contractors, or demolition companies that have visibility into what will soon be available. Designs can be made demountable so that building elements can be repurposed at the end of a structure's functional life.

If even more material is then needed, biobased building materials offer possibilities. All kinds of biobased alternatives are available not only for construction, but also for insulation, spatial design, finishing and furnishing. These should then also be used at the end of life as high quality as possible. 

Finally, there are great opportunities in waste-free design. As much as 20 percent of the material needed for a structure is released back as waste. 

So: if waste-free construction is steered at the design stage, it makes a big difference.     

David Thelen is sector manager for built environment at MVO Nederland.

"As sector manager, I hope to support the public and private sectors in their journey to become more sustainable and future-proof. I am convinced that it is possible, but that we need to rethink, revise and redesign the way we work. It is about redesigning our current work processes, not incremental changes. Only then can we scale sustainability."

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