During the conversion, refurbishment, renovation and demolition of buildings, mineral construction waste is produced after waste separation. If this construction waste is processed in a mobile or stationary plant, it is a mineral substitute building material or recycled building material (RC).
Depending on the composition and ingredients, a distinction is made between better quality (RC I material) and poorer quality (RC II) if it is not a special recycling material (e.g. blast furnace slag). In earthworks and road construction, the recycled material can be reused in an economically viable way in the long term.
The installation of mineral substitute building materials must be carried out in such a way that there is no risk of detrimental changes to the groundwater quality or harmful changes to the soil. According to the Substitute Building Materials Ordinance, installation is only subject to notification or authorization in very few exceptional cases.