INGENIEUR
Table 3: Comparison of reduce, reused, recycle and recover
Reduce
Reused
Recycle
Recover
● Where possible stop waste coming on-site in the first place.
● This can be achieved by ordering only quantities which are required and communicating to
manufacturers to order size-specific items which do not require cutting to size.
● The next option should always be to consider whether the materials can be reused, either
on-site or by someone else.
● Items such as timber, tiles and bricks are often easily re-used. Packaging items such as
pallets and crates may also be collected by the supplier for re-use elsewhere.
● This option is for all materials which cannot be reduced or reused.
● It involves processing the waste material, for example, crushing concrete to transform into
aggregate or melting metal or glass to form new products.
● Some recycling can be carried out on-site, but often the waste must be sent to an off-site
recycling company for processing.
● Segregation of wastes to prevent contamination is important for recycling to ensure that
skips are not rejected by the waste contractor.
● Most construction materials can be recovered with the right recycling equipment, such as
trash compactors, shredders, crushers and balers.
● Commonly recovered materials from construction projects include:
● Wood, brick and concrete
● Gypsum wallboard
● Steel (which is 100% recyclable), and other metals
● Asphalt paving and shingles
● Non-asphalt roofing and shingles
● Architectural salvage materials
● Material recovered from land clearing
Figure 4: Systematic approach towards construction waste management through a building life cycle
44 VOL 82 APRIL-JUNE 2020