Environmental Innovation Centre’s Post

The construction industry is a major contributor to environmental pollution, but innovative solutions are emerging. By utilizing sustainable building materials, like recycled plastic waste, we can reduce waste and build affordable, eco-friendly homes. One example is Plastic Bottle Village, where Robert Bezeau used over a million discarded plastic bottles to construct a village, highlighting how waste can be transformed into sustainable housing. Beyond plastic bottles, materials like hempcrete—a durable, eco-friendly alternative—are gaining attention for their low environmental impact and excellent insulation properties. Exploring these materials offers innovative ways to address housing needs while reducing our carbon footprint. To learn more about sustainable construction practices, read more via the link below and discover how you can make a difference. https://lnkd.in/d5A_5AGc

The Shift Is On! The challenges in reducing waste, improving recyclability and managing the collection of waste, particularly with single-use packaging, are significant and systemic for many organizations...but the good news is that solutions do exist. And the shift to reuse is on! Reuse systems are gaining momentum in Canada and positive examples of successful reuse models already exist. CHEP Canada is proud to be included in new case studies from the National Zero Waste Council (NZWC), highlighting how reuse can work for consumers, institutions and retailers. Read the case studies: https://lnkd.in/gKyde7Xh #CHEP #NationalZeroWasteCouncil #CircularEconomy #Reuse

I know there are many fans of ecologiQ out there, but many of you may not have seen their Recycled First Summary Report. It's well worth a quick read and covers their findings across metro, regional road and rail projects. Apart from the headline stat (see below) and performance statement - " the use of recycled and reused materials across Victoria’s major infrastructure projects has almost doubled". A few other gems include:- ROAD -  Metropolitan road projects have a 2 to 3 times higher recycled material adoption rate than regional projects ( due in part to availability/transport). Adoption of products with high recycled content are strong in the categories of wearing, base and intermediate course asphalt, crushed rock and cement treated crushed rock, fill, granular filter material. RAIL - the adoption of recycled and reused materials on rail projects has been slower. Despite this, we are starting to see Recycled First rail projects adopt a range of innovative recycled material products, especially those which contain recycled plastic content. Recycled plastic composite sleepers, recycled plastic conduits, recycled plastic drainage pipes, recycled plastic permanent bollards and recycled plastic temporary safety barriers. And of course, they also reinforce the very sensible advice of providing clear expectations, ideally targets, early on in the tender phase so contractors are able to clearly provide more sustainable options for consideration both before and after contract award. https://lnkd.in/gSdDCNS5 #SustainableProcurement #infrastructure #RecycledFirst National Intermodal Vivian WY Tam FTSE Joeley Pettit Bernadette Fitzgerald Chelsea McLean Mollie Matich Ramola Y. Nimisha Nanda Ulliyada Waste Management and Resource Recovery Association of Australia

🌍🏗️ As urbanisation and population growth surge, the demand for buildings and infrastructure is skyrocketing. By 2060, global buildings are expected to double, adding the equivalent of New York City every month for 40 years. This boom comes at a significant environmental cost. The construction industry, a major contributor to waste and CO2 emissions, accounts for 30% of global waste and 40% of annual CO2 emissions. With construction also producing 19% of global plastics, it's clear that continuing business-as-usual is unsustainable. Explore how policies and financial incentives can combat plastic pollution in construction in our blog. Let's build a sustainable future together! Read more here:  https://lnkd.in/ePF3QuX6 #SustainableConstruction #PlasticPollution #GreenBuilding #ConstructionIndsutry

Check out the CHEP case study below 👏👇♻️ https://lnkd.in/ehEfCRXf

Great news! After years of searching, Supra Reciclaje has found a technology that regenerates EVERY type of #plastic waste into sustainable high-impact products for construction -- and we're bringing it to Guatemala! RESIN8™️ from @CRDCGlobal is a range of high- performance building materials for structural and non-structural concrete applications, as well as asphalt. RESIN8™️ products are 80% repurposed plastics, and integrating them makes end products BETTER than the traditional alternatives: 👷♂️ Concrete gets lighter and more insulating, saving money on transport and energy use. 🚗 Asphalt gets more durable, so roads last longer. 🌎 And both lower the #carbon footprint of building, bringing the construction industry—and our communities—closer to meeting shared #climategoals. To bring that future to Guatemala, I was honored to host the Costa Rica team from CRDC Global and its plastic collection subsidiary, CRDC Recover PBC. We agreed to an ambitious plan of action for transforming Guatemala into a world leader in plastic waste management and regenerative building materials. By joining forces, we are not only addressing the immediate waste challenges like Rio Las Vacas, but unlocking access to groundbreaking technologies that are both effective and scalable, for a truly #circulareconomy. Stay tuned for more updates as we continue to push the boundaries of what’s possible in sustainable waste management and environmental protection! https://lnkd.in/dHVgzX6V Guatemala Green Building Council Centro Guatemalteco de Producción más Limpia #Sustainability #Regeneration #CircularEconomy #Innovation #EnvironmentalImpact #Partnership #SupraReciclaje #CRDCGlobal #RESIN8 #WasteManagement #PlasticRecycling #Guatemala #EnvironmentalStewardship #GreenTechnology #Aliarse #Biosferagt #TheOceanCleanup #HabitatForHumanity #ProgresoX #CollaborationForChange

Plastic is affecting our health, wellbeing and natural environment – that's why the Plastic Free July initiative is aiming to enable millions of people to be part of the solution to this pollution! Cleaner streets, oceans, and beautiful communities are all possible with an educated and more responsible attitude to single-use plastics – something you can help with straight away at home, school, or work! Plastic is also prevalent throughout the construction industry with research suggesting that every year the UK produces 55,000 tonnes of plastic waste from construction projects – less than half of which is recycled. It's a situation the industry is looking to tackle – The Alliance for Sustainable Building Products (ASBP) Reducing Plastics in Construction Group, which brings together stakeholders from across the sector, is looking at solutions and opportunities to start reducing the use of plastics both in products and packaging. Find out more about Plastic Free July 🔗 https://bit.ly/2LmosuY #PlasticFreeJuly #ChooseToRefuse #construction

📈 New Insights on Plastic Waste in UK Construction 🚧 A recent report by PBC Today highlights a concerning trend: plastic waste in the UK construction sector has grown 15 times faster than in Europe. This rapid increase underscores the urgent need for the industry to adopt more sustainable practices and reduce its environmental impact. The article points out the rising dependence on plastic materials in construction, which has led to significant waste challenges. As the industry progresses, innovative solutions and stronger regulations are crucial to tackling this growing issue. For more details, read the full article here: https://lnkd.in/etKEan3U At The Best Connection, we're committed to sustainability. Explore how we incorporate Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) principles into our operations: https://lnkd.in/e_xysmeT #TheBestConnection #Sustainability #Construction #PlasticWaste #EnvironmentalImpact #ESG #GreenBuilding

The 2024 Waste Expo Australia is done and dusted! My key takeaway: there was too much good stuff on at the same time 😅 What i found out: Australia uses 150 million tonnes of materials to make the buildings & infrastructure we need each year and between 10-30% of this becomes waste. Who knew tiny amounts of Graphine Oxide could allow recycled aggregates to replace virgin materials in concrete production. Ie we can use waste from construction sites instead of natures sand for concrete. That's a win win, thanks for the research RMIT University! Also, how do we know something is "made of 95% recycled material"? Corportations know we pay more if we think a product is recycled... The DCCEEW Framework for Recycled Content Traceability tackles this. Its only voluntary, but over time hopefully it will weed out the "marketing magic" in our shopping isles! Thanks to the future curious and change agents that i met along the way 🤹♀ #WasteExpoAU #Traste #WasteManagement

MK is an innovative business model that produces usable resources from normal waste by using waste separation and recycling technology. This technology turns it into smart building materials without needing to separate the waste. Through a recycling process, MK produces resilient damper connections for buildings. These connections are obtained from rubber and plastic waste. MK's main goal is to convert waste into usable construction resources so that we can build habitable houses anywhere in the world. MK's initiative in this field is that by using waste separation and recycling technology, instead of burying it in waste places, it turns it into smart building resources. Using these resources, elastic damper joints are produced, which are used in the construction of houses. In addition to preventing environmental pollution due to waste burial, this initiative leads to the optimal use of natural resources and reducing energy consumption in the construction industry. With this approach, MK helps to build habitable houses in any part of the world and leads to the realization of a sustainable environment and improving the quality of human life. #circular_economy #circular_economy #Bastarbandi_economia #Sustainable_Development #resource_recycling #EnvironmentalProtection #Reduce_waste_of_materials #sustainable_production