Distribution of materials in construction and demolition waste in Portugal

Abstract

It may not be enough simply to know the global volume of construction and demolition waste (CDW) generated in a certain region or country if one wants to estimate, for instance, the revenue accruing from separating several types of materials from the input entering a given CDW recycling plant. A more detailed determination of the distribution of the materials within the generated CDW is needed and the present paper addresses this issue, distinguishing different buildings and types of operation (new construction, retrofitting and demolition). This has been achieved by measuring the materials from buildings of different ages within the Portuguese building stock, and by using direct data from demolition/retrofitting sites and new construction average values reported in the literature. An attempt to establish a benchmark with other countries is also presented. This knowledge may also benefit industry management, especially that related to CDW recycling, helping to optimize procedures, equipment size and operation and even industrial plant spatial distribution. In an extremely competitive market, where as in Portugal low-tech and high environmental impact procedures remain the norm in the construction industry (in particular, the construction waste industry), the introduction of a successful recycling industry is only possible with highly optimized processes and based on a knowledge-based approach to problems.

Keywords

Construction and demolition waste quantification materials distribution demolition retrofitting Portugal

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Adams, KT ( 2003) How to Identify the Best Practicable Environmental Option for Construction and Demolition Waste? CIB Report 287. Abdol R. Chini, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA.

Baccini P. and Brunner PH ( 1991) Metabolism of the Anthroposphere. Berlin, Germany: Springer-Verlag.

BRE (Building Research Establishment) (2009 ) Retrieved from http://www.smartwaste.co.uk/ (accessed 6 May 2009) (created by BRE http://www.bre.co.uk/).

Brunner PH and Staempfli DM ( 1993) Material balance of a construction waste plant . Waste Management & Research 11: 27-48.

CIB Report (2005) Deconstruction and Materials Reuse - an International Overview, TG39 Deconstruction, Publication 300. The Netherlands Abdol R. Chini, University of Florida , Gainesville, FL, USA.

CIB Report ( 2008) Construction Materials Stewardship, W115, Publication 318. The Netherlands. John B Storey, University of Wellington , Wellington, New Zealand.

Coelho A. and de Brito J. ( 2007) Construction and demolition waste management in Portugal . In: Proc. Conference Portugal SB07 - Sustainable Construction, Materials and Practice. Lisbon, Portugal . Amsterdam, the Netherlands: IOS Press BV, pp.767-774.

Construction Materials Recycler (2009) Retrieved from http://wasteage.com/mag/waste_news_briefs/ (accessed 3 July 2009). Construction Materials Recycler, Lisle, IL, USA.

Costa U. and Ursella P. ( 2003) Construction and demolition waste recycling in Italy. In: Proc. Conference Wascon 2003 - Progress on the Road to Sustainability, San Sebastian, Spain. The Netherlands: ISCOWA, pp. 231-239.

10.

Decree 209/2004 (3 March) (2004) Waste List. European Waste List [approved in Commission Decision n°2000/532/CE, changed by Commission Decisions 2001/118/CE (16 January), 2001/119/CE (22 January) and 2001/573/CE (23 July)] harmonization and transposition to the Portuguese environmental legal framework. European Commission , Brussels, Belgium.

11.

Franklin Associates (1998) Characterization of Building-related Construction and Demolition Debris in the United States, Report No. EPA530-R-98-010, prepared for the US Environmental Protection Agency, Municipal and Industrial Solid Waste Division, Office of Solid Waste, Washington, DC, USA.

12.

Grübl P. , Nealen A. and Schmidt N. ( 1999) Concrete Made from Recycled Aggregate: Experiences from the Building Project ‘Waldspirale’. Retrieved from http://www.b-i-m.de/public/tudmassiv/damcon99-gruebl.htm (accessed 12 January 2010).

13.

Hurley JW ( 2003) Valuing the Pre-demolition Audit Process, CIB Report 287 . Abdol R. Chini, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA.

14.

Klang A. , Vikman P-Å. and Brattebö H. ( 2003) Sustainable management of demolition waste - an integrated model for the evaluation of environmental, economic and social aspects. Resources, Conservation and Recycling 38: 317-334.

15.

Lauritzen EK and Jannerup M. ( 1993) Guidelines and experience from the demolition of houses in connection with the resund Link between Denmark and Sweden. In: Lauritzen EK (ed.) Demolition and Reuse of Concrete and Masonry. Proceedings of the Third International Rilem Symposium (Proceedings 23). London, UK: E. & F. Spon, 35-46.

16.

Mehus J. , Petkovic CJ , Elgensen CJ , Karlsen J. and Lillestøl B. ( 2005) Recycled aggregates: a viable alternative for the Norwegian building and construction industry. In: Proc. Conference World Sustainable Building Conference, Tokyo, Japan: Tokyo University Press, pp. 753-763.

17.

Mulder E. , de Jong TPR and Feenstra L. ( 2007) Closed cycle construction: an integrated process for separation and reuse of C&D waste. Waste Management 27: 1408-1415.

18.

Paes A. ( 2001) Retrofitting and maintenance market potential, according to the built environment characteristics. In: Proc. Censos 2001 Seminar - Final Results. ITIC, Lisbon, Portugal. (in Portuguese).

19.

Pereira L. ( 2002) Construction and Demolition Waste Recycling: the Case of the Portuguese Northern Region. Master Thesis in Civil Engineering, Minho University, Braga, Portugal, (in Portuguese).

20.

<CF f="AdvTimes-i" n="7.970000"/> Reixach FM , Cuscó AS and Barroso JMG (2000) Situatión actual y perspectives de futuro de los resíduos de la construcción . Spain. (in Spanish): Intitut de Tecnologia de la Construcció de Catalunya (IteC), Catalunya.

21.

Seo S. and Hwang Y. ( 1999) An estimation of construction and demolition debris in Seoul, Korea: waste amount, type and estimation tool. Journal of Air & Waste Management Association 49: 980-985.

22.

Simons BP and Henderiecks F. ( 1993) Guidelines for demolition with respect to the reuse of building materials: guidelines and experiences in Belgium. In: Lauritzen, EK Demolition and Reuse of Concrete and Masonry. Proceedings of the Third International Rilem Symposium (Proceedings 23), pp. 25-34. E. & F. Spon , London, UK.

23.

Sustainability Victoria (2009) Retrieved from http://www.sustainability.vic.gov.au/resources/documents/Waste_Volume_to_Weight_Conversion_Table.pdf (accessed 23 July, 2009). (Original source: Sustainability Victoria, Melbourne, Australia).