Towards carbon neutral construction materials: prerequisites and impacts of increasing use of wood-based materials and their circulation in the building sector

Sustainable forest management and harvested wood products (HWPs) together with circular solutions can create a growing carbon sink and storage, which is a cornerstone in a carbon neutral construction industry. Carbon neutral construction materials are also presently in focus as EU is preparing to introduce carbon tariffs (i.e.

Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism) for imported goods.

At the same time, the transition towards a more biobased and circular economy is increasing the pressure on renewable resources. There is thus a need to balance and optimize the use of commercial forests, to avoid over-harvesting.

Previous studies have highlighted the importance of shifting to long-lived HWPs, such as building materials and wood-based composite materials. The building sector provides excellent opportunities to implement these measures.

The aim of the project is to present a feasible pathway towards a carbon neutral construction industry in Finland and Sweden by increasing the use of wood-based materials.

The current building stock and present construction targets are modelled, the perceptions of stakeholders as well as the recently renewed legislation is analyzed.

In addition, improved estimates of the climate mitigation potential of wood constructions, based on production capacities and by analyzing the economy-wide impacts across both supply- and value chains, are included. The goal is to provide a roadmap for policy and decision makers on how to make this transition.