Local resources for a circular construction sector: an analysis on the French case

The construction industry generates the largest consumption of materials and the largest flows of waste in the world. Strategies referring to the concept of circular economy for construction are developing strongly. One of the actions recommended by these strategies, notably those implemented by local authorities, is the search for a spatial proximity in the supply of materials for the construction sites. However, to carry out this action, authorities require a better knowledge of the location of resources and activities of extraction and production of materials on the one hand, as well as the use of materials on the other hand.This article aims to provide such knowledge on the French case for sixteen groups of construction materials. The location of supply is studied by differentiating between materials on the one hand and stages of the material circulation chain on the other hand, using data from the scientific and technical literature. The factors influencing this location are then studied.The results show that supply is strongly linked to national or international supply chains, with a tendency to increase distances, as well as strong disparities between materials on the one hand and territories on the other. Strong constraints contributing to a lesser spatial proximity are exerted at the extraction and production stages and are related to the characteristics of the activities (notably the capital intensity of some), the regulatory framework and international competition.These results are discussed to suggest avenues for the definition of territorial circular economy strategies as well as for the continuation of research work in order to respond to the limitations observed in terms of data availability and quality.