Steps You Can Take To Protect The Environment During Construction
People are becoming increasingly more aware of environmental concerns in all aspects of life.
The US government continues to regulate environmental concerns in every industry, including construction. Which, makes sense sense the construction industry has been known to create negative impacts in the past through demolition waste, water pollution and air pollution.
That means it's more vital than ever to keep your construction projects as environmentally friendly as possible.
The great news is that often these solutions are not only better for the environment, but they're also better for the bottom line of your construction company.
We go over a few ways you can protect the environment during your construction process in the article below.
Table of Contents
- Follow The Rules
- Eco-Friendly Building Design
- Minimize Waste
- Use Preventative Measures
- Green Construction Practices
- Protection of Ecological Resources
- Go Paperless
- Protect the Environment and Your Bottom Line
Follow the rules
Make sure that you follow all regulations set by the Environmental Protection Agency or EPA.
Your company must abide by the Construction and Development Effluent Guidelines.
The EPA is very clear when it comes to the outset of building construction, that the protection of the environment should always come first.
Site owners and operators are required to perform erosion and sediment controls, manage dewatering activities, and stabilize soils.
These rules are carried out to minimize and prevent any harmful effects to the surrounding areas and should be followed by everyone in the construction industry.
Eco-Friendly Building Design
Companies have many opportunities to make eco-friendly choices in the design phase of a project. They might not be able to create a fully green building, but they can incorporate resources that help reduce carbon footprints.
Companies can choose to use sustainable materials like recycled or natural resources that produce less CO2 when they are manufactured.
Design teams must also consider the durability of a building or structure, as well as its long-term waste production and energy consumption needs.
In your design, it's always beneficial to include renewable energy sources like energy efficient solar panels, smart appliances, and HVAC systems, and strategic window placement to maximize the use of natural light, while also improving indoor air quality.
Minimize Waste
Construction projects produces a large number of waste materials, period. There's no way around it.
However, you can and should look for ways to minimize the waste you're producing and encourage sustainable practices on the jobsite.
Increasing the efficiency of your operations, optimizing the use of supplies and materials, and choosing products and methods that reduce waste are all great ways to reduce the production of waste materials for all your projects.
Every little bit adds up.
Use Preventative Measures
There are countless types of dangerous materials used in the construction industry.
If not handled and disposed of properly, everything from hazardous chemicals to toxic fumes and waste products may all lead to the destruction of the surrounding natural environment.
As a responsible owner and concerned citizen, you have have both an environmental responsibility and social responsibility to have an eco-friendly construction business that will not harm but sustain the environment.
To put this into practice, you must come up with safety measures minimizing the risk of exposure to hazardous materials.
During and after the course of each project, you should discharge pollutants correctly and safely.
Having preventive measures in place makes sure that all wastes from your construction are handled and disposed of according to the following protocols.
Green Construction Practices
Once the building is designed, there will be new opportunities for sustainable construction practices that open up on the construction site.
Reducing noise is an excellent way to start since noise pollution is a common complaint from those who live or work near active construction sites.
You can upgrade your heavy equipment to newer, more fuel-efficient models.
You can also use alternative fuel sources when possible and limit the number of time machines spend idling and carefully maintain all equipment.
Protection of Ecological Resources
You need to protect the water, plant life, and animal species in the area of your project.
Not only will the general public take note, but the government has regulations in place to protect the biodiversity of local ecologies.
Your end goal is to complete your construction phase with the highest quality, most efficient timeline, and the least environmental impact.
People will notice.
.png?width=400&name=Untitled%20design%20(1).png)
Go paperless
There are several methods to reduce waste and protect the environment.
One of the easiest ways to get started is to get rid of paper.
Eliminating paper waste is undeniably one of the best and easiest ways to decrease waste.
I bet you can look at your desk or office and see the towering piles of paper—everything from documents to notebooks and blueprints.
Using paper is complicated and expensive. It takes a lot of raw wood and chemicals to produce one sheet of paper.
Not only does it take up a lot of space, but paper is unreliable. Spill some water on it or get caught in a gust of wind, and all your notes will be gone forever.
By eliminating paper waster and switching to digital resources, you'll be able to organize your documents more efficiently, benefiting the environment and your management practices in the long run.
Protect the Environment and Your Bottom Line
There are several ways to make your projects more environmentally friendly while increasing your bottom line at the same time.
Explore sustainable construction methods that optimize your project efficiency while minimizing your environmental impact.
Backed by over 75 years of quality, commitment, and experience, the STEVENS family of companies values the environment and strives to be the preferred industrial engineer and constructor of choice.
To learn more about what the STEVENS family has to offer, click the button below.
