In the European Union, 40 per cent of energy is consumed by buildings which, in turn, emit 36 per cent of greenhouse gases. Further highly-emissive processes are construction, the production of construction materials, and the renovation and demolition of buildings. Considering the above, the construction sector has a crucial role in achieving climate neutrality.

Decarbonisation targets of cities cannot be reached without the widespread use of innovative and sustainable construction materials; they should allow for a drastic reduction in the carbon footprint of buildings at every stage of their life cycle and the improvement of their energy efficiency. Sustainable water management is also of vital importance. Simply increasing material efficiency by accelerating thermal renovation and recycling of construction materials can reduce CO2 emissions by 80 per cent.

Sustainable cities form an ecosystem drawing upon emission-free products (including construction materials), spatial planning and organisation of the city, habits of residents and business decisions of investors. The latter largely depends - at least in the first phase of transition - on a system of widely available and effective incentives and tools created at the level of regulation and public policies. The implementation of sustainable solutions should be promoted as far as possible by public procurement regulations and policies and employed as a tender criterion.

A viable transformation of cities in the spirit of sustainability requires reliable and transparent procedures in the planning process and throughout the construction and modernisation of buildings. These processes need to be based on reliable, clear and transparent standards for the environmental life cycle assessment of buildings; they should constitute a basis for verification of the environmental impact of a facility and expressing it in measurable values. Transparent criteria also make it possible to reliably compare the qualities of the construction materials offered on the market, and thus conduct an optimal construction process. Designers, investors, contractors and building users in Poland are looking forward to having such comparative tools that are already used in other EU countries (Italy, Finland and Sweden). When introducing standards for certified buildings and analysing CO2 emissions throughout their life cycle, harmonious cooperation of all actors involved in the construction process, especially local authorities and businesses, is crucial.

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