Hi,
Bentonite mud used for filling in the foundation phase is normally sent to special landfills as hazardous waste, thus being excluded from MR2 calculations.
However, there is a special treatment that uses flocculation and decantation techniques to separate the mud from the water, and what results is a kind of earth-like material that is accepted by end-use entities as regular excavated soil. In a specific project, this earth-like product is being sent to a site that uses soil as material to fill the land (something like ADC material).
My question is: since the product being sent for reuse is a type of earth/soil material, my first hunch is that it would have to be excluded from MR2 calculations. But technically, what should be excluded is "excavated soil" and land-clearing debris, and this material is NOT excavated, despite being a kind of soil; it's a material used in construction. So: CAN we include this in MR2 calculations as diverted waste, or are we not allowed to?
Thank you!
RETIRED
LEEDuser Expert
623 thumbs up
November 8, 2011 - 3:37 pm
Paola, you pose an interesting question. I think your first hunch is a little misguided because if the product were used as an ADC-like material at landfills then it would be included in the MRc2 calculation. See Calculations on page 359 of the first version of the BD+C Reference Guide, which states, “Any construction debris processed into a recycled content commodity that has an open-market value (e.g., alternative daily cover material) may be applied to the construction waste calculation.” The product that results after the special treatment is a result of something that your team brought to the site (Bentonite mud), right? If so, then I would say that since you brought it on site, it is earth-like and not soil, and it is definitely not from land-clearing operations, then you should include it in your MRc2 calculations as diverted waste.
Please note that in the first and second public comment drafts of LEED 2012 they have finally addressed ADC and are excluding it from counting towards diverted debris. See http://www.leeduser.com/topic/leed-2012-certification-2nd-public-comment... for more info.