Case Study: Separation at Source

The Sustainable Building & Construction Solution.

Background

When Waste Management embarked on a journey to build a new sustainable home for their Auckland team in 2019, they knew they wanted a fit for purpose, world-class development and a building process that followed the sustainable ethos of the circular economy which the business embraces.

The commercial and industrial facility comprises a truck depot, bin storage, offices, car parking and extensive landscaping, enclosed workshops for maintenance, and includes New Zealand’s first electric truck conversion workshop.

Sustainability was fundamental from the outset of the project. With more than twelve waste streams being produced from the demolition through to build phase, the team wanted to achieve the highest levels of waste minimisation as possible. As such, a “separation at source” solution was implemented, that included having separate bins onsite throughout to collect the different waste streams for repurposing / recycling.  The result was an accurately measured materials recovery rate of 76% during the build phase and a total of 97% from demolition to build.

Separation at Source:
The Sustainable B&C Solution vs Default single bin Recycling Solution

Committing to recovering as much building and construction material as possible via a sustainable “separation at source solution” provides many benefits over a default “single bin” solution:

• You are taking ownership of your own waste.
• Supports the highest levels of sustainability.
• Maximises recovery.
• Supports the Circular Economy
• Ensures accurate reporting.
• Reduces double handling and sorting of waste.
• Reduces waste contamination, leading to higher levels of material recovery.
• Helps identify problematic waste.
• Goes towards achieving points (Home/GreenStar)
• Informs decisions for improvement.

Working in Partnership

The highest levels of building and construction materials recovery are best achieved by working in partnership with your waste service provider. Waste Management supports many construction companies throughout New Zealand with achieving their targets and supporting the projects’ Waste Minimisation Plans.

We have several solutions available for achieving your targets, including:

• Separation at source solution.
• Waste education for your team.
• Digital solutions for simplicity

Standardisation and consistency are a major factor for gaining smooth and effective waste disposal from the time that waste is created through to the collection for recycling or disposal.  Within the workplace, team effort has been proven as the recipe for success when it comes to waste awareness, waste responsibility, and the reduction of waste generation, resulting in increased recovery of recyclable material. 

Contact your Account Manager or phone 0800 101010 to discuss the “separation at source solution” for your next building project.