Sustainable Handling of Construction and Demolition Materials

Construction and Demolition materials are the waste products of building, road, and bridge construction, renovation, and destruction.

FREMONT, CA: Construction and Demolition (C&D) materials are the debris generated during the construction, renovation, and demolition of buildings, roads, and bridges. A Sustainable Materials Management (SMM) strategy promoted by the EPA identifies using construction and demolition (C&D) materials in new construction projects to reduce the need to mine and process virgin materials.

C&D PRODUCTS IN AMERICA

C&D materials constitute a significant portion of the United States waste stream. These various C&D materials can be managed for new productive purposes and diverted from the landfill.

EPA's report on trash characterization, Advancing Sustainable Materials Management: 2018 Fact Sheet, estimates the number of materials generated by C&D and the amounts repurposed or sent to landfills. Steel, wood goods, drywall and plaster, brick and clay tile, asphalt shingles, concrete, and asphalt concrete are discussed in this article. The generation estimates estimate the quantity of C&D materials resulting from the building, renovation, and demolition of roads and other structures. "Next use" refers to the intended next-use market for a C&D material, which, depending on the material, could be fuel, manufactured products, aggregate, compost, mulch, or soil amendment. Government and industry organizations provide the data used to estimate the cost.

RECYCLING CONSTRUCTION AND DEMOLITION MATERIALS

Many building materials can be recycled where there are markets. Recycling asphalt, concrete, and debris is a common practice.