You're a construction professional. How can you ensure that your work is environmentally responsible?

In my opinion durability is the original sustainability. It is meaningless to create something from “sustainable materials” that is not durable or is badly designed. If you want to conserve resources, design things well and build them to last…. Then the objects’s intrinsic value will inherently sustain it.

Environmental impact assessment EIA is a key document that would be produced and managed for a project compliance with environmental requirements. EIA would include the environmental aspects to take care during basic design, detail design, construction and commissioning. Of course EIA during operation would be of great value in terms of consumables handling and waste management. I have seen weakness from EPC Contractors to manage EIA process. It is always recommend that EIA for a project to be developed, tracked and updated by third party specialized in environmental field.

For making your projects environmentally responsible First take responsibility of wastes in the project. Use environment safe materials, yes ,sustainability should be there in action.

A building does not stand alone. It is part of a community, it is part of the neighborhood. Planning ahead does not only mean considering the right site, materials and design. Thinking ahead about how your project can support the health of the community through choices that minimize impact on the environmental AND health needs to be part of the calculus. Plan for how your site add to the needs of the community (regardless of what service the planned facility will provide)? Can you provide for resilient infrastructure (such as renewably backed microgrids)? Can you plan for a place of respite with cooling if that is what is needed. Most importantly, plan WITH your community to truly understanding their needs for real sustainability

As a Claim Consultant in the Construction sector, I must deal with a lot of paper and documents. One of the best ways to reduce my personal environmental impact is to have my clients provide only electronic copies. I am amazed how well i have adapted to soft documents and find I am spending less and less time standing by the printer. I would encourage everyone to adopt this stance and reduce the number of paper copies of documents needed for your daily business.

Reduce environmental footprint by utilizing eco-friendly construction methods, such as geowall and gabion instead for reinforced concrete retaining walls. Using biodegradable foam with Tunnel Boring Machines.

Putting our ECO mission into practice. Continuously chanelling discussions with clients towards embracing environmentally sustainable designs and incorporating green materials such as theAFT E-Fibre for reinforcing industrial concrete floor slabs.

To promote environmentally responsible construction, it is essential to explore the utilization of sustainable and alternative building materials. Through my research, I have examined the feasibility of employing load-bearing bricks for low-rise buildings, specifically up to three stories. The findings not only highlight the environmentally friendly nature of the material, crafted from abundant and readily available clay soil and water, but also underscore a cost-saving benefit of 8.31%. Additionally, the production process requires minimal energy, contributing to its overall advantages.

I would add that the cost and emissions associated with the transport of the material is also important. Purchasing local materials and forming relationships with local vendors allows for a multitude of benefits including environmental benefits, the support of local business, as well as a strengthening of a build vernacular adherence in an increasingly cut-and-paste internationally consistent built environment.

Holz ist sicherlich das effizienteste Baumaterial der Welt. Die W?lder mussten aber nachhaltig bewirtschaftet werden. Es braucht auch eine gute Weiterbildungsstrategie

What is the energy performance of a building? The EPC records how energy efficient a property is as a building, using an A+ to G rating scale (or A to G in the case of a building that is a dwelling) where A+ is the most efficient and G is the least efficient). In commercial buildings, energy optimisation is the process of optimising energy efficiency while minimising energy waste. It entails determining and putting into practice plans to cut down on energy use, enhance equipment performance, and optimise energy systems.

All of these considerations & contributions provide ideas for improvements that can make a difference environmentally. Still, a crucial factor being whether they are actually applied to projects. That's why I'm most interested in the forward thinking areas of still practical advancements that will incrementally change the game over time. You have to admit, that the more marketable and value optimized solutions available are the most likely to make the cut. I'm fortunate, In the past couple of months alone, my employer has hosted various informational presentations on Solar facade technologies, Geothermal designs and operations, Lower carbon concrete designs & resources etc. The best way to help influence positively is to be informed!

Les panneaux solaires contribuent depuis déjà des années à la réduction de la consommation d’énergie et permet ainsi la diminution de l’utilisation des énergies fossiles responsables de plusieurs émissions de gaz à effet de serre dans l’atmosphère.

La performance énergétique d'une construction dépend de sa localisation, son orientation, de son inscription dans son environnement. Les comportements des matériaux de construction utilisés sont également importants, les choix de mode de chauffage ou de refroidissement doivent également conjugués performance et économie.

In my experience, one way to optimize the use of structural elements cast in place is the use of certified precast elements. A correct structural analysis making correct use of the standards, maximizing the value of engineering, provides a significant reduction in construction time and cost, consequently saving energy and making the project more sustainable.

Curing consumes water in a huge phenomenal way. Appropriate coats almost nullify this requirement. What is important is the quality of such coating. If open pocket is left , water in concrete evaporates and kill the purpose.

Since wet mortar is not needed, using dry mortar lowers the amount of water needed. Furthermore, there's no need to cure mortar while using dry mortar. Water-saving devices such as waterless urinals and toilets with low flush rates or high efficiency can save a significant amount of water.

Where possible try to store re-use water from Wastewater Treatment Plants or harvest water from roof runoff. Construct infrastructure to get non-potable water to areas for irrigation. Apply for state and federal funding/grants to fund the design and construction of these infrastructure needs. Entities can then sell non-potable water at a lower rate than potable water. This water can be sold for the use of construction activities, dust control, irrigation, or treated back to drinking water standards. By treating back to drinking water standards the water can then be pumped back into the aquifer or storage tanks for re-use.

Lors des projets de construction la remise en l’état des sites après exécution du projet est un aspect important, lors des constructions sur site des cours d’eaux sont souvent détruits ce qui entra?ne à la longue des inondations dans certaines villes riveraines. D’où la nécessité de remettre les sites en l’état afin de préserver cette ressource vitale.

Aujourd'hui, de nombreuses innovations techniques sont mises en ?uvre pour contribuer à la préservation de l'eau. Malheureusement, je constate que la plus grande difficulté reste à gérer le comportement humain. Il est regrettable d'engager des frais dans des innovations technologiques lorsque fermer un robinet ou réparer un tuyau qui fuit n'est pas encore automatique pour de nombreuses personnes.

Para diminuir os resíduos em uma obra, é essencial adotar práticas sustentáveis, como gest?o cuidadosa, compra consciente, pré-fabrica??o eficiente, reutiliza??o de materiais e conscientiza??o da equipe para separa??o e reciclagem adequadas. Essas medidas visam minimizar o desperdício e promover uma constru??o mais sustentável.

Proper deconstruction techniques to convert deconstructed debris to wealth in form of various products like artificial sand, aggregates, bricks, reuse of steel, doors and windows acn be ensure.

It is easy to enrol in a waste recycling scheme, via the skip service you choose. My sites always separate the wood, recyclable metal, plastics and plasterboard from other waste. Small sites can be a challenge but skip dividers solve the need for multiple skips. I use crushers on site where I have demolition projects which then gives me recycled concrete or bricks as infill or simply mud prevention. On smaller sites, recycled materials can be bought to be used for many jobs such as dressing sub-floors, under slabs and drainage for sub-soil.

Desde un dise?o minucioso y pensado desde un concepto de ingeniería circular, se puede reducir casi al mínimo la generación de residuos, entendiendo los mismos como 'error al dise?arlo' al generarse y buscando siempre una utilidad a cualquier subproducto.

In terms of minimize the waste generation, there should be a waste management services should be implemented to timely dispose of domestic waste, Chemical waste, lubricant waste and construction waste. Especially, the lubricant waste and oil leakage should be cleaned/disposed appropriately to avoid the soil contamination that which will affect the environment adversly.

One think that should be helpfull during certification & recognition process is to seek assistance from experts for, Carbon footprint tools, Decarbonation tools for buildings;ACV(Agregate Crushing Value) analysis for materials of construction; Operation equipments analysis; Strategy of building efficiency consumptions; Building decarbonation solutions. Net-zero Strategy solutions are provided by companies like DT Master Carbon

In 3rd world the responsibility towards environment is limited but fair enough to use sustainable materials, optimize energy efficiency, reduce waste, and implement eco-friendly designs are good places to start with, while the challenges remain enormous to complete the projects on time and on budget !

Consider making the site LEED. I see my thought was already listed, there are several other certifications for a project that you can make a green project.

Para alcanzar la certificación, existe una serie de lineamientos que se deben cumplir obligatoriamente. Tanto nuevas construcciones, como grandes remodelaciones o edificios existentes en etapa operativa, pueden aplicar para ser evaluados. Además de los beneficios directamente relacionados con la eficiencia del consumo de agua, consumo energético o la utilización de mejores materiales; también es un sello de calidad de construcción sobresaliente y un método publicitario muy efectivo.

Nice in a 1st world but in the 3rd world your biggest contribution to the environement are: 1. Employing previously unemployed people. 2. Educating them to enable them to be better or take on higher complexity tasks to enable them to earn more. 3. To maximise the ontribution you make with the project to the environment, a road open economic activities, a dam gives syustainabillity and a building reduces the use of inefficient resources to perform their functions. 4. If you can find somebody to give you acreditation, it would be great, but you will do better getting a reputation with people that your are leaving the comunity in a better situation after than before.

At a region USGBC BOD meeting our ice breaker was to share a challenge. We shared our challenges receiving great advice. Upon the turn of an executive project manager, he was very embarrassed to share his. He had missed a costly scope of work on his current LEED project. He had forgotten about recycling the rubber matting from the project. The only place that would accept it was hundreds of miles away which means he wouldn't qualify for the LEED credit; plus, the extra cost to ship was not included in the original proposal. Thankfully, as a recycler I found another project that needed it. He received the LEED credit, plus an innovation credit for the reuse of the rubber matting. Don't be afraid to ask for help ever - asking is free!

Participei de um projeto de transmiss?o de energia em um pais da America Latina, onde identificamos e reflorestamos cerca de 200 nacentes que, por conta do desmatamento da regi?o, haviam secado, apos 5 anos do projeto, a agua voltou a minar em 70% das nascente que estavam "mortas" o que gerou um impacto positivo ao projeto de ganhos incalculaveis

Optimize design to minimize consumption of environmentally costly materials such as cement, steel and Aluminum. Often construction specifications force the contractors to consume more material than that required for constructing safe, stable and durable atructures

There are a number of ways we can ensure construction is environmentally responsible, such as prioritising designs that incorporate green spaces (green tunnels and bridges)to enhance biodiversity. Explore the use of innovative and sustainable construction materials, such as recycled aggregates and low-carbon concrete of which many variants are being trialed in the industry. BIM also has a massive role to play in ensuring environmentally responsible projects, through planning and execution, optimising the utilisation of resource and thus minimise waste. These are but a few of strategies that can be integrated into projects that will contribute to sustainable development and reduced environmental impact.

I'm biased, I know, but using "The GPM P5? Standard for Sustainability in Project Management" would be a good place to start. A key tool in support of the standard is the P5 Impact Analysis.