The Blatchford development has once again exceeded the recycling target set for building removal at the site. In order to maximize the community’s sustainability goals at every stage of development, the City of Edmonton set a target to divert 80 per cent of building materials from the landfill. In the second stage of building deconstruction, 93 per cent of materials from six former airport hangars was reused or recycled.
Since 2014, twelve buildings have been disassembled with a total of approximately 27,000 tonnes of materials (92 per cent) of materials diverted from the landfill.
“We felt it was important to ensure that every stage of the development process, including our pre-construction work, stays true to our goal to be a leader in environmentally-friendly community design,” said Mark Hall, Executive Director, Blatchford Redevelopment. “The building deconstruction process was one of the first areas where we could demonstrate our commitment to making this community one of the most sustainable neighbourhoods in the world.”
| Stage 1:
Six buildings |
16,388 tonnes (90 per cent) of building materials diverted from landfill |
| Stage 2:
Six buildings |
10,672 tonnes (93 per cent ) of building materials diverted from landfill |
| Total to date | 27,060 tonnes (92 per cent) of building materials diverted from landfill |
Through the deconstruction process, buildings were slowly dismantled to allow the materials to be sorted for recycling, reuse or waste management. Four buildings on the site were dismantled piece by piece and rebuilt off-site by private citizens.
The approximately 27,000 tonnes of building materials reused or recycled includes concrete, metal, debris and wood.
The other pre-construction environmental activities on site include recycling of runways and re-using soil excavated from the stormwater ponds to grade the site and to eventually build a large hill in the park. Utility and road construction on the first residential stage and section of park begins spring 2017.
