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Waste Management

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Waste Management

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    Harry Whitver

    1. Reduce

    The best way to manage C&D waste is not to create it. To that end, it’s critical to know what materials make up the bulk of the waste. By weight and volume, wood and drywall alone account for more than 60 percent of all jobsite waste. Practices and products, including advanced framing and engineered components and detailed framing and panel layouts on 2-foot modules, can reduce miscuts and unnecessary scrap.
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    Harry Whitver

    2. Source-Separate

    In sophisticated C&D recycling markets, builders who separate recyclable materials rather than commingling make it easier and less expensive for recycling centers to process the waste. The key is to match the size and number of containers to the waste being collected, and to each phase of work, to make it simple for crews and subs to support. Putting multiple and mobile containers where the waste is being generated also is efficient.
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    Harry Whitver

    3. On-Site Recycling

    In more remote recycling markets, consider C&D processing on site. Small-scale grinders for wood, drywall, and cardboard (the third-largest waste contributor) are a larger investment in a jobsite recycling effort, but might well pay for themselves by eliminating hauling and dump fees. A wood chipper can also create landscape mulch—and perhaps create a side business serving other builders to further offset the investment.
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    Harry Whitver

    4. Salvage

    The lingering recession is boosting teardowns, but there’s gold in them thar homes—if you spend the time to “deconstruct” them for salvage or recyclable material. Experts in the field recycle up to 80 percent of an older home’s wares, from brick to windows to plumbing fixtures—and may earn a tax credit and/or a few extra bucks for their efforts while all but eliminating dumpster rentals and tipping fees.

Residential construction and demolition (C&D) waste comes to nearly 60 million tons annually in the U.S., more than 10 percent of the total domestic waste stream. Upstream, about 40 percent of the raw materials consumed in the U.S. are used in construction. One result: Increased tipping fees at a landfill near you.

Builders looking to save some money—and perhaps even generate some revenue—have committed to waste management practices that address how much material comes on the jobsite (and in what form), how it is used, and what’s done with the scrap.

And it’s not just for those going for green building certification, where a baseline waste management plan is required and a little extra effort can earn additional points. “Even if a waste management plan isn’t prescribed, it’s still easy to implement and delivers tangible benefits,” says John Peavey of the NAHB Research Center in Upper Marlboro, Md.