Construction management and a state of zero waste

Elimination of waste through the efficient use of project resources is fundamental for a state of zero waste. Despite the growing global recognition of the environmental impacts associated with the generation and management of waste across industries, the construction industry, and, in particular, the construction and demolition (C&D) sector, continues to generate a large amount of waste. Furthermore, the majority of the efforts designed to find solutions to total waste elimination have largely focused on the macro and micro levels.

This chapter aims to improve understanding of the application of zero-waste principles to the meso level of C&D. The links between construction management principles and waste minimization are explored. We suggest some drivers for achieving zero waste, such as building procurement teams, empowered work teams, lean designing, education and training, awareness of waste-management systems, senior management commitment, technological innovation, changes to organizational culture and individual behaviour change. We recommend implementing a series of generic, meso-level strategies to help achieve a state of zero waste.