Construction sector denounced over attitude to waste

But, the comments have been rejected by the researcher on which London Remade said its opinion was based.

Researchers believe information on resource efficiency must be provided to construction workers “at the heart of the industry”

The capital's recycling development organisation said 150 million tonnes of “potential resources” were being wasted by building firms through “careless handling of materials” and a “reluctance to purchase recycled building materials”.

The organisation also criticised working practices, saying construction companies were using “cheap” agency workers “have little interest in resource efficiency” and that too few foremen are on hand to enforce standards on site.

In making its comments, London Remade cited new research carried out on its behalf by specialist environmental group Kotuku.

“Headlines”
But the author of the final report summing up the findings of the research yesterday refuted the claims that construction companies do not care about their environmental impact. Andrew Pears said London Remade's comments had been designed to “grab headlines”.

Mr Pears said of the construction sector's attitude towards the environment: “There is care, but there isn't the knowledge or infrastructure to back it up.”

”Individuals at all levels in the stakeholder chain are deeply committed to working responsibly and sustainably. “
– Kotuku report
The researcher, who is an ex-builder himself, explained that the general perception of the construction industry was that it did not care, but added that “the problems are many” for companies to address existing practices.

Caf Van
The Kotuku group have pioneered a method it believes can get through to construction companies and change current practices by bringing information to workers and managers on-site.

Using a “Caf Van”, the group have exploited builders' tea breaks to run half-hour presentations three times in a day to explain simple measures to minimise waste and maximise recycling. Over 130 presentations were delivered throughout South East England and Wales to test out the idea, tailored to each individual company.

“This is a tremendously diverse industry, but about 90% of the construction sector is made up of companies employing less than 10 people,” Mr Pears explained. “For these companies, the pressure to deliver work on time is enormous – but we found if you catch them in their breaks, you can get through to them.”

Incentive
The researchers offered workers free food and those that attended the presentations received certificates of environmental awareness. “This was a big incentive,” Mr Pears explained. “Some of these people have never been awarded any kind of certificate before.”

Mr Pears added that feedback from the workers themselves had been “overwhelmingly positive”.

The conclusions of the Kotuku report did suggest that current practices must change, but researchers said that the key to a more sustainable industry was getting more information through to the people “at the heart of the industry”.

It said the system of procurement for construction materials was “complex” and blamed the reluctance to purchase recycled building products on “an agenda of risk minimisation that is often in contradiction to good environmental practice”.

“Deeply committed”
But, contradicting the comments from London Remade, the report concluded: “What has emerged from this survey is that care and concern is part of the construction industry, and that individuals at all levels in the stakeholder chain are deeply committed to working responsibly and sustainably.”

Mr Pears told letsrecycle.com his group was now looking for support to take the “Caf Van” concept further in bringing waste minimisation and recycling information to construction workers.