Construction Waste Management

One major concept of the construction industry is the construction and demolition waste produced Adopting a sustainable method of managing this waste would assist in the movement toward sustainability (Kibert , 1994

Historically , industrialized nations have grown and advanced technologically while often disregarding the environment One important component of sustainability is to develop and grow in a sustainable manner , often referred to as sustainable development Sustainable development , in general terms , may be defined as meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs

. The development that occurs on local , regional , and national levels plays a key role in society 's sustainability . Local or regional developments must occur in a sustainable manner or the ultimate goal of sustainability cannot be achieved (Teo and Loosemore , 2001

A subset of the concept of sustainable development is sustainable construction practices . The construction industry , the structures it creates or removes and the products developed to support and supply the industry have significant global impacts . In the United States buildings represent more than 50 of the nation 's wealth . The construction industry uses 40 of all extracted materials . Thirty percent of all energy used is a result of the construction industry and the built environment (USEPA , 1998

A subset of the construction process is the practice of managing the waste produced by these activities in a sustainable manner . Over 34 of our nation 's waste is produced by a single sector of the economy , the construction industry . Approximately 7 pounds of waste are produced for every square foot of new construction . Renovation and demolition can produce up to 70 pounds of waste per square foot depending on the structure type and demolition technique . Buildings are constructed and on average , are demolished twenty-eight years later (USEPA , 1998 Unfortunately traditional mechanical...