Delivering effective Waste Minimisation - Wrap

Delivering effective Waste Minimisation 03
1.0 Introduction
The construction industry is the UK’s largest
consumer of natural resources, using over
400 million tonnes of material per annum.
It generates more than one-third of the UK’s
waste arisings, of which only half is reused
or recycled (primarily aggregates and metals).
Over 60 million tonnes of construction sector
waste is sent to landfill or similar disposal
sites every year.
Figure 1.1: Sequence of actions to achieve resource efficiency
Waste minimisation
and management
Materials recycling
Procurement of
recycled content
Figure 1.2: Waste minimisation in the context of overall material
resource efficiency and wider sustainability goals
More efficient use of materials would
make a major contribution to reducing
the environmental impacts of construction
including reducing demand for landfill and
the depletion of finite, natural resources.
This would also contribute to the economic
efficiency of the sector and of the UK as
a whole.
Energy
Materials in
(produce &
materials
selection)
Key sustainability goals
Materials
Water
Materials
out (good
practice
WMM)
Major improvements in materials efficiency
are possible, without increasing cost by:
minimising the overall creation of
waste resulting from, for example,
over-ordering or inefficient design;
reducing the quantity of material sent to
landfill during the construction process
through effective waste management;
recycling materials already on the
construction site into the new
construction project; and
using more recycled materials and
mainstream products with higher
recycled content.
Efficient use of
finite natural materials
Utilising materials
recovered onsite or
locally e.g. construction
and demolition
waste, PFA
Procurement of products
containing higher than
standard levels of
recycled content
Reducing the total
amount of materials
in a design
Minimising
environmental damage
Specification of materials
with low environmental
impact (e.g. those that
are ‘A’ rated in the Green
Guide to Specification)
Waste avoidance
and minimisation,
e.g. through offsite
manufacturing and
stock control
Returning packaging and
surplus materials (e.g.
plasterboard off cuts)
for reuse/recycling
Collection, segregation
and recycling of wastes
Taking action in each of these areas in the
sequential order outlined in figure 1.1 (right),
would enable construction projects to achieve
good or best practice waste minimisation and
management (WMM). Waste minimisation can
be seen in the context of overall materials
efficiency and wider sustainability goals in
figure 1.2 (right).