Construction waste will be separated onsite. It will be hauled (altogether in the same truck) to centers where workers clasify the waste and sell it to companys which take it to recycling plants. Waste not sold to recycling plants is sent to the landfill. However, it is difficult to find out what percentage of total waste is actually diverted from the landfill for a particular project. How can this procedure be documented towards credit compliance?
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RETIRED
LEEDuser Expert
623 thumbs up
May 25, 2015 - 12:07 pm
Alicia - How is the diversion information reported to you? Is there facility-wide information or is it project specific? I am referring the last FAQ above that starts with "The waste management facility we are using is providing..." Have you reviewed LI ID #10060 - http://www.usgbc.org/leed-interpretations?keys=10060?
Jon Clifford
LEED-AP BD+CGREENSQUARE
LEEDuser Expert
323 thumbs up
May 31, 2015 - 11:56 am
Alicia—LI#10060 addresses using a “system recycling rate” monitored by a local government authority. This approach is also addressed in LI#3000 and Reference Guide Correction #100000902 (http://www.usgbc.org/leed-interpretations?keys=100000902). However, if your local government does not regulate recycling facilities, you cannot use this approach.
If a government monitored facility is not available, LI#5171 (http://www.usgbc.org/leed-interpretations?keys=MRFs) offers one possible approach to measuring “project-specific” comingled loads similar to what you describe. As noted in this ruling, if your recycler uses “Methodology #1,” “they need to document actual percentage of material recycled based on actual weight or volume of material.” This would require weighing each load at the sorting center BEFORE sorting and weighing the landfilled, residual waste left over AFTER sorting. Calculate the percentage recycled:
100 x ( BEFORE – AFTER ) ÷ BEFORE = % Recycled
This could be an additional step for the sorters, and it would require them to sort and weigh each load separately.