Sustainability and Resource Efficiency in Construction Legislation

Climate change, increasing urban traffic, emissions, and urban densification pose significant challenges to the global society. The high living standard in industrialized countries needs a huge amount of natural resources, especially in building construction. Securing life quality in these countries requires a reduction of the consumption of natural resources and the emission of ecologically harmful substances. The same applies to the improvement of living conditions in developing and newly industrialized countries. Construction legislation may contribute to save natural resources and therefore to preserve them for future generations. In Europe and especially in Germany, sustainability issues have been implemented in construction legislation. These legal adjustments and new requirements in planning and construction law as well as modified codes and standards are intended to contribute to a future that is worth living. The paper investigates if recent changes in German construction legislation and related regulations guarantee environmental-friendly construction and if this development can serve as a good example for other countries. The authors give an overview about the general principles of construction legislation in Germany. They provide information about recent development in the legal basis for sustainable planning and building. Latest implementation of sustainable issues in construction are analyzed and illustrated by means of examples. Conclusion is that, all over the world, construction legislation requiring sustainability and resource efficiency in planning and construction can contribute to life quality for human and animals as well as to protection of the environment while recognizing the needs of future generations.