Outcomes of the NonHazCity3 Policy Implementation Dialogue Workshop in Vienna

Purpose of the Workshop:
To facilitate an open dialogue between stakeholders on advancing the implementation of non-toxic environment goals in EU, national and local policies, with a focus on hazardous substances in buildings, procurement, and circularity.

Key Outcomes & Highlights

• Stakeholder Engagement:
  Over 40 participants, including national and local authorities, academia, NGOs, industry representatives and professionals actively contributed to the event and its four interactive dialogue sessions.
• Identification of Gaps and Priorities:
  Stakeholders discussed options for bridging regulatory gaps to achieve zero-pollution buildings
• Main Discussion Areas:
  1. Chemical Transparency:
     • Call for harmonised digital dissemination of chemical information for construction products (Digital Product Passport, Digital Building Logbook)
     • Agreement on an EU-wide framework featuring confidential expert assessments of chemical content for construction products, as a basis for an EU traffic light label.
  2. Non-toxic Building Materials & Green Public Procurement (GPP):
     • Call for mandatory minimum GPP criteria as a basis for non-toxic construction.
     • Chemical options shall be integrated to procurement software.
     • Ecolabels to be utilised as prominent tools by GPP.
  3. Circular Economy, Recycling & Reuse:
     • Hazardous substances were identified as a major barrier that hinder reuse, recycling and end-of-life handling and break the circular model.
     • Participants flagged conflicting objectives between re-use and recycling of construction material
     • The need to strengthen the implementation of the SCIP* database (i.e. dissemination through the Digital Product Passport) via the use of AI tools.
  4. Knowledge Exchange & Capacity Building:
     • Clear demand for ongoing training on chemicals legislation for procurers, building planners and other relevant construction stakeholders, as well as SMEs.
     • Development of user-friendly procurement templates and guidance documentation
     • Necessary knowledge to assess, regulate, and implement non-toxic construction practices
• Notable Messages:

• • Local authorities (municipalities) reflected (panel) on the potential benefits of the proposed solutions.
  • Better chemicals traceability tools and mandatory information disclosure were highlighted as enablers for tox-free construction.

Key Messages

• Tox-free construction through GPP is possible today for big cities with a large purchasing power, when strict mandatory criteria are established.
• Participants highlighted a need for enhanced chemical transparency in value chains, capacity building for procurers and setting a higher level of ambition beyond the Substances of Very High Concern (SVHCs).
• There is a shared understanding that EU and local policy must work hand in hand to close current implementation gaps.

Programme Manual Online

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