Cook County's Zero waste goal

The process of building is a long and complicated one. There are a lot of processes involved at every stage of the construction. But when the building is up and functioning, what happens to the construction waste?

I was surprised to find out that up to 40% of the landfill in US consists of building/construction waste.

So in Illinois State, US, at the Cook County, the new requirement for the construction waste management is that 70% of the debris created from demolition has to be recycled and reused rather than sent to the landfill. Moreover, the additional 5% has to be reused on residential structures.

 

http://archpaper.com/news/articles.asp?id=6453#.VXGfxM-qpBc

It is extremely important to review what goes to waste and explore more option to adapt the potential 'rubbish' to new use. This initiative will not only help reduce the amount of landfill, but will also, hopefully, make builders think twice, and be more considerate with the materials they use. 

In addition to saving materials and saving space in landfills, this initiative will also be creating new jobs. even recycling 5% of demolition debris from about 30 residential structures can support at least one new retail center with up to five jobs and 30 full-time deconstruction workers. 

Recycling demolition waste will generate jobs, stabilize local economies, and create constant materials supply for construction and building industries.