Circular Economy

At Vonovia, we are strengthening our commitment to efficient waste management in our residential neighborhoods. During the year under review, we expanded our use of sustainable recycling schemes across our communities Investigate ways to recycle green waste and improve household waste separation. We plan to implement the project findings in other neighborhoods in the future.

For renovations and new constructions, we place great importance on installing energy-efficient electrical appliances and increasing the use of secondary raw materials.    In response to the increasingly stringent regulations surrounding material disposal, we avoid using hazardous or toxic substances from the outset. Effective waste separation concepts for good waste management and the promotion of recycling play a particularly important role in our construction and refurbishment work, as they enable us to reuse valuable resources like windows.

We have partnered with Madaster – an initiative to develop a global cadastre for materials – for two years now. The online platform functions as a materials database. We use it to manage data about the materials that go into our properties and create material passports. These documents contains information about the quality, origin and location of the materials used in a particular building. They also provide an insight into the financial value of a building and its materials, while also giving users an indication of the value of these materials in the circular economy.

A significant portion of the apartments in our portfolio were not constructed by Vonovia. Some of these buildings contain materials that were state-of-the-art at the time of construction but are now considered hazardous upon release. Materials such as asbestos, "old" artificial mineral fibers (AMFs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), or lead-based paints in existing buildings are typically removed during maintenance or refurbishment projects or when a new tenant moves in, and are replaced with suitable materials. When the disposal of hazardous or contaminated building materials requires careful professional handling, we expect all of our service providers to comply with applicable legislation and regulations, particularly those concerning health, safety, and environmental protection. Our employees receive regular training on these subjects.