Reuse of wood products left after demolition: challenges, facilitation and Green Public Procurement’s role : a case study for Helsinki City
Shorokhova-Palolahti, Nina (2024)
2024
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Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-202403285425
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-202403285425
Tiivistelmä
This study aimed to assess the challenges and ways to facilitate the reuse of construction products, focusing on wood products left after demolition. Commissioned by the City of Helsinki, this research also examined how Green Public Procurement can support these reuse practices.
The emphasis on wood materials was driven by Helsinki City's goal to attain carbon neutrality by 2035 where the expansion of wood constructions plays a vital role due to its carbon-binding properties. The theoretical framework of this thesis included concepts of a circular economy, waste, and green public procurement. The present study adopted a descriptive methodological approach and employed a qualitative methodology by implementing questionnaires and semi-structured interviews with open-ended questions to collect data. In total, experts from seven different organizations participated in interviews representing various departments of the City of Helsinki, Ministry of the Environment, University of Helsinki, XAMK, SATO Oy, Rasek Consulting Oy, and AINS Group.
The results of this study showed that all participants agreed on the need to reuse wood products left after demolition, however, they emphasized difficulties with its practical implementation due to a non-functional reuse market, high costs, unclear legal rules, lack of harmonized standards, and assessment methods. The study showed that facilitation of the reuse can be achieved through changes in legislation to create a predictable operational environment to invest, the development of the reuse market, constant learning, and benchmarking. Moreover, results revealed that since green public procurement has significant purchasing power even though it is a voluntary tool, the inclusion criteria “reuse of wood products left after demolition” in Helsinki City’s pilot projects is crucial for collecting required data and obtaining expertise for further expansion on a larger industrial scale.
The emphasis on wood materials was driven by Helsinki City's goal to attain carbon neutrality by 2035 where the expansion of wood constructions plays a vital role due to its carbon-binding properties. The theoretical framework of this thesis included concepts of a circular economy, waste, and green public procurement. The present study adopted a descriptive methodological approach and employed a qualitative methodology by implementing questionnaires and semi-structured interviews with open-ended questions to collect data. In total, experts from seven different organizations participated in interviews representing various departments of the City of Helsinki, Ministry of the Environment, University of Helsinki, XAMK, SATO Oy, Rasek Consulting Oy, and AINS Group.
The results of this study showed that all participants agreed on the need to reuse wood products left after demolition, however, they emphasized difficulties with its practical implementation due to a non-functional reuse market, high costs, unclear legal rules, lack of harmonized standards, and assessment methods. The study showed that facilitation of the reuse can be achieved through changes in legislation to create a predictable operational environment to invest, the development of the reuse market, constant learning, and benchmarking. Moreover, results revealed that since green public procurement has significant purchasing power even though it is a voluntary tool, the inclusion criteria “reuse of wood products left after demolition” in Helsinki City’s pilot projects is crucial for collecting required data and obtaining expertise for further expansion on a larger industrial scale.