A recent report from the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) has warned that pressure on local authorities to keep waste out of landfill is at risk of backfiring. Ever increasing target rates for recycling is resulting in an emphasis of quantity not quality, producing a poor quality stream of recyclable material. Accordingly much of this is low-grade recycled material which holds no real economic value so ironically becomes destined for landfill anyway.

The report suggests that the waste industry needs to amend its culture to focus not only on increasing the amount of material recycled, but also on the quality and value of the material being recycled. This would then allow recycled materials to be fed back into the economy as saleable goods.

The report calls for the progression to a “circular economy” where recovered and recycled material is of a sufficient quality to be routinely reused in the economy. The ICE has suggested that the cost of making the required changes could be anywhere between £10-20bn by 2020.

BuilderScrap is of course fully aware of the need to change attitudes towards waste management, one method of ensuring that materials are not down-cycled is by ensuring that good quality new and used material are used for their intended purpose. For example construction waste, which equates to approximately 120 million tonnes includes approximately 14% of this is brand new material which has become surplus (WRAP). Furthermore, it is estimated that the same quantity again is reusable second hand material.

By recovering this material before recycling, significant savings can be made with reduced demands on energy and resources required in the recycling process, whilst also ensuring that the product has an economic value and not downgraded. Reclaiming and reusing materials is the most effective way to recover value from waste materials.

Defra has welcomed the report by the Institute of Civil Engineers (ICE) and will be utilising the report alongside their current review of waste policies in England. A spokesperson from Defra stated “It contains some interesting ideas and policy suggestions which we will look at in detail as part of our review”.

It will be interesting to see whether this review places greater importance on the areas of reuse and ensure that legislation and incentives ensure that the ideal waste hierarchy is achievable and economically viable.

Source: BBC News (13/01/2011) (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-12172766)

We have all stayed at rubbish hotels but this one is a little different, it’s a hotel made entirely out of rubbish.

The hotel is made up of approximately twelve tonnes of rubbish collected from Europe’s beaches. It has been built as an artistic method of raising awareness about the throwaway culture that we live in and to highlight the coastline’s worrying levels of pollution.

The hotel is located in the world famous tourist city of Rome and has been created by German artist HA Schult. The distinguished guest list of the hotel includes eco-warrior and Danish fashion model Helena Christensen.

Whilst this may be seen as a bit of fun by some, there is a very serious underlying message that we are ignorant about rubbish and resources. We currently consume far beyond the earths capacity of resources and at some point something must give.

To some extent the increased awareness of recycling has largely determined that our throw away lifestyles can be maintained safe in the knowledge that rubbish will be recycled. This fails to address the true underlying problems and the need to reduce our rubbish, where this is not possible then reuse should be preferential to recycling.

This is a value that BuilderScrap can assist with in relation to construction materials, we are always seeking to maximise the life cycle of products and resources by providing a platform to do so.

It is everyone’s responsibility to ensure that we do everything we can to reduce the amount of consumption that we are currently inflicting on our planet, after all the earths resources are finite.

This week I’ve scoured the internet to find the most unusual building designs from around the Globe, it turns out I needn’t have bothered. All I have to do is look to our cousins from over the Atlantic; I have looked through a host of different building design and compiled my top 3.

Third place is located in Orlando, Florida; is this very appetising McDonald’s restaurant. This does the marketing for itself, anytime someone sees this they’re going to fancy a few French fries and maybe even a shake to go with that!

In second place we have Wonderworks another from Orlando, Florida. This design really turns things onto its head. The three story,  82 foot tall building has been flipped on its triangular top and squashed into the pavement. Inside things get even crazier with a hurricane ride which has winds of up to 65 mph, a 5.2 magnitude earthquake experience and a Titanic exhibit.

The winner caught my eye from the moment I saw it as it is very close to my heart. We all drink a little bit too much, as a collective nation we drink far more than recommended. John Milkovisch from Southern Pacific Railroad has the perfect way to reuse all the beer cans he drinks, he crushed the cans and used them to decorate his entire house it took him 18 years to complete. It may not be the most cleverly designed or particularly abstract in relation to shape. I just love wondering what was going through his mind when he first came up with this plan and obviously BuilderScrap loves any reuse or recycling building projects and this is certainly that. Sadly he passed away in 1988, thankfully a non-profit company has purchased his home and it is now classed as visionary art.

If you have any strange and wonderful architectural designs that you know of why not send them in.

I read with great interest an interview in the Sunday Times this weekend with actor Jeremy Irons; he stated his fears of the implications of continued population growth and the associated impacts upon the planet and its resources.

Jeremy Irons has propelled himself into a position as a green campaigner and in the course of the interview declared his ambition to produce a documentary about sustainability and waste disposal in much the same way as Al Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth. He is currently seeking a wealth of expert opinion as well as seeking appropriate funding in order to produce the documentary, before stating his ambition to hopefully make it into a movie.

On the issue itself Irons told the Sunday Times “One always returns to the fact that there are just too many of us, the population continues to rise and it’s unsustainable” before continuing to add “I think we have to find ways where we’re not having to scrap our effluent junk and are a really sustainable planet”.

This made me recall a seminar I recently attended which stated that we currently consume four planets worth of resources, clearly an unsustainable level; most will agree with Irons that it is something that requires our urgent focus as a global community.

Irons went on to discuss the need for a new economic vision as a response to the global financial crisis. “I don’t think things can ever be the same again. The next generation will have to think laterally and find ways to cope with this”.

At BuilderScrap this is something that we are well aware of, the consumptive nature of society in the western world places resources under immense strain, in recent years we have seen and heard of the pressures on resources such as fossil fuels, timber and water to mention a few. We must ask how this can be achieved without damaging the economic climate and promote green initiatives and innovations.

We also recognise that this consumptive nature must be reduced; goods and materials seem to be given much shorter life spans than necessary. In some cases in the construction industry we witness manufactured materials that are sent to landfill without ever being taken out of its packaging let alone used. Part of the economic vision must be to cut out this waste and extend the life of materials and products.

With this principle in mind Irons launched his own attack on the throwaway society “Why does it make sense for us all to be buying a lot of motor cars, selling our old ones and scrapping them? Why don’t we make cars that last for 40 years? We could”. Irons himself says he runs “very old motor cars”.

Undoubtedly examples exist across most industries, our experience at BuilderScrap predominantly within the construction industry shows that it is possible to prolong the life of building material. In the past as a society we have been too quick to throw away material and buy new, clearly a more sustainable approach means that we could extend the life of this material by reusing or recycling before disposing. BuilderScrap is a platform that exists to facilitate such behavioural changes.

Irons summed up by stating that we all need to live less decadently, a need to recycle before replacing goods and the need for wealth to spread about. He concluded “There’s a long way to go”.