Government reforms have negative impact on SWMP for construction industry

Well-intentioned reforms have had negative impacts on SWMP rules that helped waste management.

In 2008, legislation was passed to enforce the proper management of waste on English construction sites, with Site Waste Management Plans (SWMP) compulsory to all construction projects costing over £30,000. The SWMP records the volume of waste created on a construction site and documents how it will be disposed of, recycled or reused.

However, despite the construction industry’s increased focus on the management of construction waste, it is no longer compulsory for sites to produce site waste management plans for every project. Whilst these reforms are well-intentioned, with the government wanting to reduce red tape, the changes have had a negative effect on the SWMP rules that were having a positive effect on the building industry and reduction of waste.

SWMP regulations have had a positive influence on the way that the construction industry thinks about waste, encouraging companies to show greater consideration for recycling and reusing materials.

According to the Digest of Waste and Resource Statistics, the construction sector produces the largest amount of waste.

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has released the Digest of Waste and Resource Statistics; a compendium of statistics on a range of waste and resource areas.

According to WRAP, the construction industry accounts for 60% of all materials used, created 33% of waste and generated 45% of all CO2 emissions in the UK.

As part of the Government’s 2008 Climate Change Act, the UK has vowed to reduce emissions by 80% by 2050, which has made the recycling of materials essential for the construction industry if the UK is to stay on track and meet the targets. The industry is already exceeding its 70% target for recovering construction and demolition (C&D) waste.

In order to stay on track to hit the government’s targets, there will be greater emphasis on waste reduction during the design stage of the construction process, where there is the greatest room for environmental improvements.

Designing for the deconstruction process is a topic that is being considered within the industry, with designing for deconstruction encouraging more eco-friendly demolition plans. The materials used and how companies plan to recycle them will allow architects to deliberate which materials will create the largest amount of waste and eliminate them from the building work in favour of more environmentally-friendly alternatives.

Significant improvements and investments have been made over the last decade, on the types of materials that can be recycled and reused, which broadens the quality of the environmentally-friendly structures built. However, there is still an issue in making specialist recycling services available nationwide.

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