Construction and demolition waste (CDW) is one of the largest contributors to global waste streams, simultaneously posing significant environmental and resource management challenges. The management of CDW, particularly its potential for energy recovery and industrial symbiosis, has garnered increasing attention as part of a circular economy approach. This comprehensive review explores global practices in CDW management, analysing theoretical developments, technological advancements, and emerging resource recovery and reuse trends. Background: CDW accounts for more than a third of all waste generated in the EU. A wide variety of materials, such as concrete, bricks, wood, glass, metals, and plastics, make it a very un-homogenous waste stream with high potential for material recovery through different approaches. Methods: This review draws on an extensive analysis of scientific literature, case studies, and industry reports to assess current practices in the CDW stream and assessment of the feasibility of energy recovery, industrial symbiosis, and object reconstruction. Results: The originality of the current research is based on a Latvian case study on CDW management that provides valuable insights into household-level practices and progress towards relevant UN SDGs. Conclusions: Various CDW streams have an undeniable potential for valorization through various approaches. Currently, the most common approach is recovery and recycling, although CDW has the potential to broaden its application within the circular economy framework. For instance, industrial symbiosis is a solution that can not only boost the valorization of CDW but also significantly increase material circularity.

The consistent rise of the per capita waste generation rate has led to an escalation of waste quantities and the need to expand waste disposal methods. Efforts to develop clean and affordable energy systems are increasingly linked to waste-to-energy as part of the transition to a circular economy (CE). A resource-efficient waste-to-energy business model within a CE offers a variety of environmentally friendly waste management options based on their overall environmental impacts but also makes efficient use of available resources and technologies to convert different types of waste into energy, which helps reduce the adverse effects on the environment and create additional energy sources. This research aims to identify innovative waste management solutions to foster the implementation of CE and a more resource-efficient business model. The research methodology is based on qualitative and quantitative research, triangulation, material flow assessment, and systems dynamics. The value of this study is within the analysis of existing waste-to-energy plant case studies to identify a set of recommendations and appropriate business models for the countries that are at an early stage of evaluation of such facilities. This study found that waste-to-energy plants are critical to achieving the EU’s waste disposal targets by 2035. The findings highlight the importance of supporting mechanisms in the waste sector, such as structural funds, as the industry primarily focuses on societal health and safety and environmental protection, alongside resource efficiency and circularity potential.

The management of asbestos-containing waste (ACW) presents a significant environmental challenge due to the material’s widespread historical use and persistent toxicity. While landfilling remains the primary disposal method, it poses long-term environmental risks and conflicts with circular economy principles. Across Europe, large quantities of asbestos remain in building stock, including approximately 15 million tons in Poland, 4.5 million tons in Lithuania, and 1 million tons in Latvia. This study examines Latvia’s ACW management challenges and opportunities, combining theoretical analysis with empirical research. A large-scale survey (n = 2005) revealed significant gaps in public knowledge, with 28% of respondents willing to reuse asbestos-containing roofing despite recognizing its hazards, highlighting a critical disconnect between awareness and behavior. The study also assessed Latvia’s pilot Asbestos Removal Program, demonstrating high public demand but limited funding capacity. Thermal treatment, particularly plasma vitrification, was identified as the most mature alternative to landfilling, though implementation barriers include high capital costs and specialized expertise requirements. Findings emphasize the need for sustainable financing mechanisms, such as a differentiated landfill tax, to ensure the long-term viability of asbestos removal initiatives. Latvia’s experience provides valuable insights for other nations seeking to mitigate ACW-related health and environmental risks through improved policy frameworks and practical management solutions.

Introduction. Social and hostility conflicts in Ukraine have caused global changes and deterioration of the ecological and economic situation in numerous countries, resulting in higher risks to the population and giving the impetus to create a new innovative, cultural, and technological society. Greening principles, which have become popular in developed countries, are impossible to implement without the coordinated cooperation of states and their genesis in accordance with joint programs and development vectors. As a result, an increasing number of foundations and grants have recently been established to support eco-friendly products and solutions, assist in their adoption, and develop the organizational structure of an efficient system based on green economy principles, thereby improving global standards and regulations. Aim and tasks. The aim of the study is to develop a methodology for planning the modernization of constructed infrastructure, better resource efficiency, and reduce waste in the reconstruction of war-destroyed objects. Results. The best option for post-war waste disposal is the construction of mobile waste recycling complexes based on fractional waste recycling and its secondary use in further reconstruction of Ukrainian infrastructure, which after final restoration will be moved to safe areas around large cities and used as stationary waste recycling plants. To improve the environmental situation, one suggests building landscaped parks that will operate due to state-of-the-art technologies (obtaining natural energy, etc.) and creating a system of harmonious combination of anthropogenic infrastructure and natural areas, businesses, and public accessibility. Conclusions. The key goal of the reconstruction of Ukrainian territories is to establish an innovative, sustainable, and safe system of social existence by increasing the efficiency of actions and methods based on the principles of rational environmental management and increasing responsibility. When calculating the cost of the restoration of Ukrainian territories, one should take into account additional expenses caused by hostilities, which will be further considered as a stress factor having a cumulative negative impact and leading to disastrous consequences that can be estimated in monetary equivalent as the sum of the price of restoration of components of the ecological, economic, and social system under the effect of a set of factors resulting in negative changes and damages.

Background. The construction sector is project-based and multi-actor, which means that early design and procurement decisions determine long-term environmental and social impacts. However, the Triple Bottom Line (TBL) framework remains too broad to guide daily trade-offs and produce the verifiable, comparable evidence that clients and regulators demand. Construction firms require an operational logic that translates sustainability aims into managerial levers, embeds them in project routines, and produces verifiable performance information suitable for assurance and procurement evaluation. Purpose. This study develops a construction-tailored framework that translates environmental, social, and governance (ESG) themes into implementation architecture for sustainable business model innovation (BMI). The aim is to make ESG actionable at the level of value proposition design, key activities, partner governance, and value capture, while preserving proportionality and reporting readiness. Findings. An integrative literature review and conceptual framework analysis produced three connected artefacts: (i) a VSME-aligned ESG theme structure; (ii) a Sustainable Construction Business Model Canvas; and (iii) an ESG–Business Model–KPI matrix with indicative metrics for embodied carbon via EPD/LCA, waste diversion and circularity measures, health and safety incident frequency (e.g., TRIR/LTIFR), and governance and compliance controls. The artefacts establish traceable linkages between ESG themes and business-model components, and translate them into decision rules relevant to tendering, procurement, and site management. The framework is calibrated for proportionality, enabling SMEs to adopt a minimum viable indicator set while allowing larger contractors to extend coverage to Scope 3 engagement, supplier due diligence, and assurance-ready data processes. Implications. ESG is reframed from a reporting overlay into implementation architecture for sustainable business model innovation in construction. The proposed framework supports prioritisation, measurable performance management, and stakeholder transparency, and can be adapted to organisational size and data maturity. Future research should validate the hypothesised causal pathways through multiple-case studies, expert elicitation, and project-level KPI testing, including ex-ante dashboards that connect leading indicators to cost, risk, and schedule outcomes.