Rubble, plasterboard, wood, paint, chemicals and plumbing waste. The world’s construction sites are major sources of waste that far too often end up at incineration facilities or landfills rather than recycling centres. Even in Denmark, there is considerable lack of knowledge and coordination when it comes to handling the large quantities of waste generated by construction projects. This is what CASA is working to change, executive officer Michael Storgaard explains.

"There is probably no other industry where the need to reduce waste is greater than in the construction industry which we are part of. It involves not only the production phase, which generates huge amounts of waste, but also the operational phase, where there is still room for improvement. As a responsible industry, we need to optimize the use of resources and reduce our environmental impact."

As a general contractor, CASA does not have their own employees at the construction sites, but rather hire subcontractors for the different phases of the construction. According to Michael Storgaard, this system is the problem in a nutshell.

"Like most contractors, we hold our subcontractors responsible for the deliveries on site. When it comes to waste management, however, there are virtually no contractual obligations or central coordination. In practice, this means that the carpentry company disposes of the wood, the masonry company disposes of the rubble, the painting company disposes of paint residue and so forth. This system makes it difficult to control if waste is managed sustainably. We also miss out on the opportunity to share knowledge and to optimize across the value chain. The need for both documentation and transparency is thus evident."

To address these challenges, CASA has initiated a comprehensive mapping of the waste challenge in preparation for an implementable action plan, says Michael Storgaard.

"First, we need to get an exact overview of the different kinds of waste generated by the construction sites. Next, we need to focus not only on sorting but also on recycling, for example by returning wood, plasterboards and other residual products to the suppliers. Finally, we need to carefully analyse the resulting data. Most likely, we will need to rethink our material consumption in some areas altogether. These are the data we are now starting to retrieve."