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Improving waste management in construction projects: An Australian study

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  • Udawatta, Nilupa
  • Zuo, Jian
  • Chiveralls, Keri
  • Zillante, George

Abstract

Construction waste generation has been identified as one of the major issues in the construction industry due to its direct impacts on the environment as well as the efficiency of the construction industry. As the industry cannot continue to practice if the environmental resources on which it depends are depleted, the significance of waste management needs to be understood in order to encourage stakeholders to achieve related goals. Therefore, this research aims to determine effective approaches to eliminate and/or minimise waste generation in construction projects. Mixed methods were adopted by combining qualitative and quantitative research approaches. Interviews and a questionnaire survey were conducted as the primary data collection methods. The findings reveal twenty six critical solutions for waste management. Five factors of solutions for waste management were extracted from the exploratory factor analysis. These factors were: team building and supervision; strategic guidelines in waste management; proper design and documentation; innovation in waste management decisions; and lifecycle management. The evidence from this study suggests that both technologies and attitudinal approaches require improvement to eliminate/minimise waste generation in construction projects. Similarly, attention should be paid to being mindful of the environmental effects of waste generation and avoiding waste generation as early as possible in construction projects.

Suggested Citation

  • Udawatta, Nilupa & Zuo, Jian & Chiveralls, Keri & Zillante, George, 2015. "Improving waste management in construction projects: An Australian study," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 101(C), pages 73-83.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:recore:v:101:y:2015:i:c:p:73-83
    DOI: 10.1016/j.resconrec.2015.05.003
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Dongchen Han & Mohsen Kalantari & Abbas Rajabifard, 2021. "Building Information Modeling (BIM) for Construction and Demolition Waste Management in Australia: A Research Agenda," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(23), pages 1-22, November.
    2. Casanovas-Rubio, Maria del Mar & Ramos, Gonzalo, 2017. "Decision-making tool for the assessment and selection of construction processes based on environmental criteria: Application to precast and cast-in-situ alternatives," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 126(C), pages 107-117.
    3. Bakshan, Amal & Srour, Issam & Chehab, Ghassan & El-Fadel, Mutasem & Karaziwan, Jalal, 2017. "Behavioral determinants towards enhancing construction waste management: A Bayesian Network analysis," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 117(PB), pages 274-284.
    4. Esa, Mohd Reza & Halog, Anthony & Rigamonti, Lucia, 2017. "Strategies for minimizing construction and demolition wastes in Malaysia," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 120(C), pages 219-229.

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