C & D News

Metro, the regional government for the Portland, Ore., region, has approved construction and demolition recycling legislation that will go into effect in 2009, according to the Oregonian (Portland, Ore.).

The policy will take effect six years after it was first proposed. The policy requires mixed loads of C&D debris to be sorted for recyclables prior to dumping, leaving no more than 15 percent recyclables in the remaining material, according to the report.

The regulation is part of the agency’s overall plan to increase recycling rates in the metro area by 64 percent by the end of 2009.

Metro officials predict the C&D recycling policy will keep an approximate 33,000 tons of C&D material out of landfills, enough to boost the overall recycling rate by 1.25 percent.

The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) has announced that former President Bill Clinton will deliver the keynote speech at the opening plenary session of Greenbuild, a conference and exposition dedicated to green building, to be held Nov. 7-9, 2007, in Chicago.

"This is an unprecedented opportunity for our green building community to hear from one of the greatest philanthropic and environmental leaders of this century," says USGBC President and CEO Rick Fedrizzi. "The William J. Clinton Foundation is facilitating a series of global action plans that are addressing some of the most intractable problems of our times—AIDS, economic sustainability as a way to eradicate poverty, the elimination of childhood obesity. Reducing C0₂ emissions that lead to climate change is another key area of focus and it’s being addressed by the Clinton Climate Change Initiative, with green building as a cornerstone of that effort."

More information is available at www.greenbuildexpo.com.

The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced that it’s seeking comment on a rule that would impose a fee on the disposal of construction and demolition debris to help fund the monitoring of groundwater, according to a report in the Canton Repository (Canton, Ohio).

The fee would be 5 cents per cubic yard or 10 cents per ton.

In April, Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland dropped the proposed fee from the budget he sent to the General Assembly. However, according to the report, his administration has reversed its position on the fee, which is expected to generate $500,000 per year to be shared with the EPA and local health departments.

More information is available at www.epa.state.oh.us.

The Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) in Maine has endorsed a controversial plan from Sappi Fine Paper to burn construction and demolition wood as a fuel source at its Westbrook, Maine, facility, according to a report in the Portland Press Herald (Portland, Maine).

The DEP has issued a draft order that would allow the mill to substitute the C&D wood for about half of the virgin chips it burns for steam power, according to the report.

According to the order, the facility will have to perform additional emissions tests. The mill has also agreed to having the debris inspected by a third party as it enters the facility.

Sappi first applied for permission to burn C&D wood in 2005. The plan has been met with concern from some residents, who formed a citizens’ group called Westbrook for Clean Air when the application was first made.

However, the company has said that it has the technology available to remove any dangerous materials from the material stream.

Dallas Contracting Co. Inc., South Plainfield, N.J., recently completed interior demolition services at a large warehouse in New Jersey.

The company was sub-contracted by a general contractor to perform interior demolition at a large warehouse. The scope of the work was to remove approximately 40,000 square feet of steel shelving that was three levels in height from floor to ceiling. This was accomplished by skilled laborers using gas torches. The company also provided a water truck and hose for fire protection. A fire watch was also maintained.

The shelving was cut into small, manageable pieces and then removed through the pedestrian doors at the side and rear of the warehouse.

The amount of scrap metal recycled allowed Dallas Contracting to offset a substantial amount of the demolition costs, according to a news release.

More information is available at www.dallascontracting.com.

Riverstone Residential Group, one of the nation’s largest independently owned property management companies, is installing recyclable carpet in 5,000 of its apartment units in Colorado. That figure adds up to nearly one-third of the properties the company manages in the state.

Dallas-based Riverstone Residential Group is claiming to be the first apartment property management company to use carpet made exclusively with 100 percent recyclable carpet fiber in Colorado.

Some carpets being removed from existing apartments will also be recycled, according to a Riverstone press release. The company plans to incorporate the installation of recyclable carpets into all of the units it manages in Colorado—nearly 17,000—throughout the next 18 months, and then on a continual basis as it renovates units and as products become available.

Riverstone is partnering with Arbor Contract Carpet, Irving, Texas, in the venture, according to Tim Babcock, V.P. of Riverstone Residential Group. Arbor’s Infinity collection of recycled carpet is the first 100 percent recyclable nylon carpet line for the apartment industry, according to Arbor.

In 2008, Arbor estimates it will divert approximately 10 million pounds of carpet from landfills while reducing greenhouse emissions and the required water, energy and oil consumption involved in new carpet manufacturing.

For Riverstone’s Colorado properties, purchasing recyclable carpet for 17,000 apartments means approximately 2.5 million pounds of carpet fiber diverted from landfills. "This move puts Riverstone’s commitment to the environment into real action," he says, "providing clients with quality and conscientious choices."

Riverstone is a wholly owned subsidiary of Consolidated American Services, which provides management, maintenance and insurance services to residential property owners.

Portions of the Rio Grande Trail in Colorado will use recycled asphalt, according to a report in the Summit Daily News (Frisco, Colo.).

The portion of the trail under construction is near Glenwood Springs, Colo. It stretches about 5.1 miles and will be 12 feet wide, including 1-foot shoulders.

The trail will use a 6-inch layer of recycled asphalt as a subgrade, which will support a 3-inch layer of regular asphalt paving.

The recycled asphalt has come from a number of local projects in the area, according to the report. The Roaring Fork Transportation Authority (RFTA) will use 6,420 cubic yards of recycled asphalt for this segment of the Rio Grande Trail.

A new report by Research and Markets called "Wood Recycling—Portfolio Analysis," finds that more than 30 percent of the wood recyclers in the United Kingdom are having financial difficulties.

The report is divided into two sections: Sector Analysis and Individual Company Analysis.

In the Sector Analysis section, the report looks at sales growth, market share and profitability, throughout a 10-year period.

In the Industry Analysis section, each of the 78 companies reviewed receives a full page of analysis, evaluating its financial performance throughout the last five years to get a full picture of its long-term prospects.

The report notes that in the last 12 months:

• Thirty-one percent of companies are now in financial danger.

• Four companies are selling at a loss to capture market share.

• The average pre-tax profit was 2.5 percent.

• The average sales growth was 11.2 percent.