Each year, millions of tons of construction and demolition materials are generated in the U.S.– around double the amount of total annual solid waste generated. According to data published by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, demolition accounts for nearly 90 per cent of the gross C&D waste that’s generated, the majority of it is disposed of in landfills.
As businesses develop short and long-term sustainability plans, and an increasing number of consumers become conscious of the impact their behaviour has on the environment and surroundings, sustainable building and demolition practices are now becoming the buzzword. In this blog post, you’ll know about the rise of sustainable demolition practices, and why they’re important.
When a building is demolished by interior demolition contractors near me, you tear apart everything in the entire structure. Although some of the interior components may have been removed and salvaged before, it’s most likely that HVAC equipment, plumbing, electrical, drywall, glass, flooring materials, insulation, ceiling tiles, concrete, and exterior facade are going to be coming down with it.
In short, all these materials need to go somewhere – they can’t simply sit on the lot. Most of the time it will all be cleaned up, loaded onto trucks, and transferred to the landfill for disposal. Several such materials may be reclaimed from old buildings or abandoned buildings and reused in upcoming construction projects.
A big part of the materials on a demolition job can be reclaimed and reused, and these practices have become more and more common with the rise in sustainable business practices. For example:
* Glass and metals may be melted down for reuse.
* Masonry may be crushed for use as an aggregate.
* Bricks may be reused as walkway pavers in other projects.
* Wood and hard flooring may also be upcycled into other projects.
Some benefits of sustainable demolition practices adopted by new-age interior demolition contractors near me are worth checking:
* Sustainable demolition practices open new job opportunities and economic activity in the recycling sector.
* Owners may cut their total building costs, whether it’s for construction or demolition. In demolition, for instance, recycling materials allows for reducing transportation and disposal costs. Some owners may also want to donate some materials of value to charitable organizations, which can count as a tax write-off.
* Recycling can even neutralize any environmental impact that comes with extracting virgin resources and producing new materials.
* Lastly because it’s worth repeating, recycling building materials helps conserve landfill space.
The Sum Up
Some different innovations and processes are designed to help streamline sustainability in demolition. BIM modular dismantling is one of them. Building information management (BIM) systems aren’t simply an asset during the construction process, but also during demolition. BIM programs can prove their worth during the dismantling process and help plan deconstruction to preserve as much material for reuse as possible. Summing up many companies are embracing a lean attitude to help determine how their behavior or lack thereof impacts the surroundings and where improvements might be made.
