Highlights
Using Recycled Industrial Materials in Buildings (PDF) (4 pp, 538K, about PDF)
Evergreen Recycling Receives Environmental Achievement Award
EPA Develops New Lifecycle Construction Resource Guide
EPA Lifecycle Building Challenge
Estimating 2003 Building-Related Construction and Demolition Materials Amounts (PDF) (60 pp, 722K)
Construction and demolition (C&D) materials consist of the debris generated during the construction, renovation, and demolition of buildings, roads, and bridges. C&D materials often contain bulky, heavy materials, such as concrete, wood, metals, glass, and salvaged building components.
Reducing and recycling C&D materials conserves landfill space, reduces the environmental impact of producing new materials, creates jobs, and can reduce overall building project expenses through avoided purchase/disposal costs. This section provides information on EPA's efforts and other opportunities to reduce C&D materials, including:
- EPA Goals and Programs - describes EPA's strategy for C&D materials and specific parternships and programs, such as the Construction Initiative, EPA's public-private collaboration to reuse industrial wastes and materials.
- C&D Research/Funding - provides links to organizations conducting research on, or providing grants for, C&D materials reuse and recycling.
- Green Building - explains EPA's Green Building efforts and the Lifecycle Building Challenge.
- Disaster Debris - provides guidance on deconstruction, reuse, recycling and overall management of disaster debris.
- Reducing C&D Materials
- What You Can Do - gives practical advice on reducing and preventing C&D materials when planning a construction/remodeling project;
- describes a wide range of C&D materials reduction techniques, such as reduce, reuse, recycle, and rebuy;
- provides resources by material type.
- Resources - lists success stories, recent publications, case studies, and factsheets.