Oregon State University
OP-19: Construction and Demolition Waste Diversion

The State of Oregon requires all new construction projects at state institutions meet the equivalent of U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED Silver standard. Further, all major renovation projects must be built to at least a LEED certified equivalent. A mandatory component of LEED certification is for construction contractors to “provide an accessible area which serves an entire building and is dedicated to separation, collection, and storage of materials for recycling” and to create a construction waste management plan, with targets for recycled and reclaimed materials. To receive full points in the Construction Waste Management section of LEED, a waste management plan must be developed to quantify material diverted away from the landfill. To receive one point in this area, 50% of all construction, demolition, and land clearing waste must be recycled and/or salvaged. To receive two points, an additional 25% of construction materials must be recycled and/or salvaged. All capital construction and major renovation projects at OSU which were surveyed for this report diverted at least 50% of their waste from the landfill. OSU goes beyond LEED standards on most construction projects. OSU Facilities Services Construction Standards emphasize environmental best practices throughout a construction project, from design to waste reduction and diversion. These same standards are applied to small projects that don’t follow LEED guidelines as well as large projects that do. One large project that goes beyond typical waste management practices is the $12 million Kearney Hall renovation project. During the design process, consultants surveyed the building with student assistance to identify materials for reuse or to repurpose for a new use. This included material not usually considered from a LEED perspective (including items from construction divisions 10 and up (which generally applies to plumbing, mechanical, electrical, fire protection and specialty items). The demolition contractor (Nuprecon) typically inventories salvage items to aid in finding potential buyers / identify local rebuilding/recycling centers interested in those materials.