Waste Management
Construction waste management (CWM) is the recycling or reuse of excess building materials—everything from drywall offcuts from new construction to an entire building’s worth of bricks from deconstruction.
When materials are purchased for a job and then go unused or wasted, avoidable costs and environmental burdens result. Attention to CWM, especially when starting early in design, can reduce tipping fees and earn LEED credits.
Waste Management
Deep Dives
Get up to speed on complex topics. You can also earn CEUs and download PDF Spotlight Reports.
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The Missing Embodied Carbon Link: Construction
Feature Article
Some researchers say construction emissions could account for as much as 30% of a project’s embodied carbon. What can be done about it?
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Constructing Change: The Contractor’s Commitment
Feature Article
The Contractor’s Commitment to Sustainable Building Practices calls on construction firms to practice green building. Here’s why the whole industry needs to get behind it.
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Waste Not, Want Not: Case Studies of Building Material Reuse
Feature Article
Reclamation and reuse of building materials can be a tough sell and hard to design for, but many project teams have learned to make it work. Here’s how.
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Prefabricating Green: Building Environmentally Friendly Houses Off Site
Feature Article
Prefabricated housing offers several potential environmental benefits, including reduced transportation impacts, reduced waste, and quality control for better durability and performance. Aside from a few industry leaders, however, most manufacturers do not take full advantage of those efficiencies to create affordable high-performance houses.
Quick Takes
Jump straight to the essentials with these short explanations of green building concepts.
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Retrofit or Build New? How Product Teams are Choosing
Infographic
Reasons to retrofit, reasons to tear down and build new, and how to decide.
In The News
We break news down to the essentials and provide expert analysis.
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Contractors Move to End Construction Waste
News Brief
Construction and demolition waste makes up nearly 70% of trash in the U.S. Contractors in the Bay Area want to bring that down to zero. -
Recycling Sparks Imagination, Avoids Landfills (For A While)
News Brief
Save A Sample! helps firms reuse product samples by donating them to architecture schools.
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Waste Not Want Not: NYC Zero Waste Design Guidelines
News Analysis
If we can reduce waste here, we can do it anywhere.
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Zero Waste? Is It TRUE?
News Brief
The TRUE rating system helps businesses and facilities eliminate waste through education and performance tracking.
Learning Resources
Syllabus supplements and CEU content, with automatic reporting for AIA and GBCI.
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Live Webinar- Construction Emissions: A Virtual Roundtable
Live Webinar
In this one-hour panel discussion, we will tap the leading experts on estimating and tracking construction emissions and talk about best practices for reducing this slice of a project’s carbon footprint.
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Breaking Barriers to Building Material Reuse
Webcast
Buildings aren’t garbage. These three circularity loop-closers are making it easier and easier to reuse materials.
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Waste Not, Want Not: Case Studies of Building Material Reuse
Feature Article
Reclamation and reuse of building materials can be a tough sell and hard to design for, but many project teams have learned to make it work. Here’s how.
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The Contractor’s Commitment: Lessons from the First Year
Webcast
The new “Contractor’s Commitment to Sustainable Building Practices" calls on firms to practice green building on the jobsite and beyond.
Just For Fun
Something weird happens every April at BuildingGreen...
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Reclaimed Building Materials in the Age of COVID
April Fools
Using reclaimed building materials is a great way to save resources and lower the embodied carbon of a building, but obtaining these materials in the age of COVID has created a new set of legal and ethical challenges.
