The EPA released its 2018 Fact Sheet: Advancing Sustainable Materials Management. According to the report, the United States generated 600 million tons of Construction and Demolition (C&D) Debris — more than twice the amount of generated municipal solid waste.
Construction and demolition materials consist of concrete, wood, asphalt, gypsum bricks, glass, etc. Materials also include salvageable building components, including doors, windows, and plumbing.
Of the 600 million tons of C&D Debris, 90% is due to demolition debris. Almost 145 million tons of this waste was sent to landfills.
To reduce C&D debris landfill, think “Deconstruction”
The EPA gives several strategies for reducing the amount of C&D debris from entering landfills.
One tip is to consider deconstruction versus demolition of existing structures and buildings. Deconstruction is the process of dismantling a building to salvage components for reuse and recycling.
Deconstruction also includes salvaging saleable assets — everything from equipment to metals and metal alloys to bricks and other building components and materials.
Asset Recovery: Proper disposal of equipment and other items
Abby Industrial’s experience includes helping company owners recover and/or properly dispose of equipment, metals, and other items before a building is decommissioned or demolished.
For example, the owner of a Canadian company had 300 MVA, 400-ton transformers stranded in the field for over five years — and after several failed attempts to rectify the situation, called Abby Industrial.
As the OPM for this cross-border, multilingual project, Abby Industrial created contracts in two languages (French and English) and vetted / hired the company with experience in safely breaking down and removing industrial equipment.
We also made this a “hands-off” project for the owner by overseeing all aspects of risk mitigation, project monitoring, and proper disposal of scrap. The end result was approval of clean site documentation by the local authorities.
Contract negotiation, Contractor management
As part of your demolition or equipment removal project, we can recommend an experienced contractor or work with yours, as well as provide insight and advice during contract negotiation. We oversee the project start to finish to reduce delays and cost overruns.
View our Projects page to learn more about some of the Asset Recovery projects we’ve successfully completed – both in the U.S. and Canada.
“Abby Industrial filled our manpower gap and got our project moving again. After thinking through the steps to mitigate our risk through a cross-border, multilingual project, Tom and his team took over. They found qualified contractors, executed the work, and followed through on completion. Pretty hands off for us. Completely satisfied with the results.”
– Paula Chu, Finance, US Magnesium, LLC
Filed under: Industry News