Sustainable Construction: Methods and Benefits

Human activities have had a negative impact on the environment and this is among the major problems we are facing today especially with the current climate change. The building industry therefore requires to play its part towards attaining sustainable and healthy world through sustainable construction (Kibert & Senzimar, 2001). Building has a life cycle from manufacture, transport not excluding installation and that entire cycle impacts our environment. Several elements contribute to climate alteration and acidification, among them being transportation of building materials to building sites, usage of equipment during building and energy consumption (Chau, 2006).

To minimize this effect of the supply chain to our environs, a detailed review of resource efficiency in each business ought to be conducted. Most raw materials used for construction are extracted from the earth. The extraction often leads to the loss of biodiversity also natural habitations are destroyed. Forestry may be cleared in the process of obtaining building resources such as timber, and concrete obtained through quarrying and mining.

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Several environmental concerns are therefore required to protect our environs and this paper addresses issues such recycling of supplies, using biodegradable resources, reuse of resources and using renewable sources of energy.

Ways of minimizing wastes and improving efficiency when utilizing resources like water and energy should not only be well researched on but also implemented (Brandon & Lombardi, 2010). Opportunities for reusing and recycling of supplies ought to be examined as this helps moderate disposal of wastes most of which are non-biodegradable. Use of non-biodegradable materials must be reduced as those materials cause lots of negative sound effects to the environment.

Techniques to dispose building wastes that can neither be reused nor recycled ought to be devised and they must be environmentally friendly. Suppliers should also design policies aimed at reducing use of raw materials, wastes and water and energy intake. Renewable resources are highly advisable on this matter. (Chau, 2006)

Said that use of building materials that require frequent replacement should be minimized as lots of resources and energy are used during the replacements, maintenance and also disposal of the worn components may cause pollution to our environment. Borderline Ltd can address some of these environmental issues by encouraging their retailors use materials that are durable and necessitate less replacement such as steel rather than wood. During transportation of the building materials to the retailers, Borderline ltd should consider using fuels that are eco-friendly and reduce trips taken to deliver materials to their customers. This can be done by proper scheduling so that retailers within one locality receive their orders together as this will significantly reduce fuel consumption during transportation.

Practicing sustainable construction is more than just about protecting our surroundings but also achieving positive financial impacts to our businesses. First, the business saves on costs which is attained through improved energy efficiency and management of carbon. Less trips to suppliers through scheduling of supplies saves on fuel usage and consequently expenditures on fuel. Non-compliance with legislation attracts fines and many other associated costs such as for clean-up, management time and legal fees, which a company that practices sustainable construction can evade (Kibert & Senzimar, 2001). Companies are also able to achieve higher profits from improved opportunities to tender due to their demonstration of risk management and sound environmental performance. Reusing and recycling materials reduces the costs of buying new materials and hence minimizing the company’s expenditure.

Use of materials that do not require frequent replacement saves on time and therefore money to concentrate on other projects and issues (Athena, 2006). Usage of renewable sources of energy such as solar panels reduces on energy costs for instance for electricity and the company records high profits. Recycling and reusing of building materials also can help Borderline Ltd to save on waste disposal costs which are currently very high due to declining availability of landfill capacity (Berge, 2009). It’s of paramount importance to address issues concerning protection of the environment. From above, we have seen that it has both environmental benefits and financial benefits to the concerned companies. Besides that, social benefits too can be achieved. This is through interaction of staffs in sustainable construction trainings, good relations between the company management and the environmental activists not excluding retailors. This builds strong business bonds, trust and reliability and hence healthy business relations.