Construction and Demolition Waste

Construction and demolition waste forms more than half the waste generated in East Sussex.  All this waste is damaging to the local environment and very expensive to handle.  A standard skip load of unsorted builders' waste can cost you or your client about £1,400.  As the Government's Landfill Tax cranks up, and landfill space becomes more scarce, it will cost even more in future.

Site Waste Management Plans (SWMPs)  became a legal requirement in England on 6 April 2008. They will apply to all construction projects costing £300,000 or more that start on or after this date, and any construction business that isn’t prepared could risk breaking the law.

A SWMP sets out how building materials, and resulting waste, are to be managed during the project. This will ensure that building materials are managed efficiently, waste is disposed of legally, and that material recycling, reuse and recovery is maximised. A survey for Defra suggests that a SWMP could deliver reductions in waste of 10 to 60 per cent and reduce costs by between 2 to 5 per cent of  the overall project value.

For further information please see the following webpages:

Environment Agency

NetRegs