A successful day dedicated to the circular economy in the public works sector!
Integral EcologyServices to businesses
9 Jun 2023
This Territorial Technical Conference, co-organized by CEREMA, Novabuild and Icam, provided an opportunity to showcase territorial approaches, whether technical or organizational, between local public works players and local authorities. Exchanging, sharing experiences and operational results on all aspects of the circular economy… a real expectation on the part of the 120 participants!
Why the circular economy?
The current depletion of natural resources means that sobriety and reasoned use are now unavoidable. Together with innovation, the circular economy is the main way of changing practices to achieve frugality in the use of our reserves.
The amount of construction and public works waste in Pays de la Loire is estimated at around 11.5 million tonnes. Around 85% of the deposit comes from public works activities, 9% from demolition activities and 6% from the building sector (source: CERC 2018 study).
Public Works activity therefore represents an essential lever for action to preserve non-renewable resources and thus promote their reuse, recycling and recovery.
A day of workshops and exchanges
Moderated by Pierre-Yves LEGRAND, Director of Novabuild, the day began with a presentation on the players involved in this field.
Speakers included Emmanuelle LEDOUX, Managing Director of the Institut National de l’Économie Circulaire (INEC), Jérôme LE GALL, President of NOVABUILD, Guillaume LEFEVRE, Director of Icam Ouest and Jean-Luc MALGAT, Deputy Director of the Angers CEREMA Ouest Agency.
The second part of the day focused on circular economy initiatives, from national regulations to local actions. Various trade experts presented tools for integrating the circular economy into projects, such as facilitating the reuse and recycling of construction waste, all of which are solutions for preserving resources and limiting greenhouse gas emissions.
The third part of the day focused on other solutions for giving materials a second life, such as recycling, reclamation and fossilization. Concrete projects were presented, such as the Projet filière 3R, led by Mahfoud Tahlaiti, a teacher-researcher at Icam.
After a buffet lunch, feedback from local authorities was presented on how to optimize the reuse of excavated soil and preserve natural mineral resources, while at the same time making the most of inert construction site spoil.
Finally, feedback on deconstruction concrete, excavated soil and materials for technical trenches was presented, as well as a cross-sectional view based on 4 case studies.
The day ended with discussions over refreshments.
