By Faten Omar

KUWAIT: To minimize construction and demolition waste, Sharifa Al-Shalfan, a Municipal Council member, submitted a proposal on Sunday to the Municipality to dismantle buildings instead of demolishing them.She said dismantling is a good option in order to reduce waste by reusing and recycling the parts and pieces of buildings. She recommended to make the practice mandatory for public buildings and optional for privately-owned structures.

Sharifa Al-Shalfan

“The demolition of buildings causes pollution to the environment due to dust resulting from the process, in addition to disturbing the owners of neighboring buildings, along with other financial losses from not using the building components that are discarded,” Shalfan said, pointing out the world is currently moving towards dismantling buildings due to its benefits. “Deconstruction contributes to enhancing the concept of sustainability by reducing the amount of solid construction waste. It leads to promoting the concept of reuse and recycling in the Kuwaiti society, which results in positive effects on the environment and the economy, as well as preserving natural resources.”

Shalfan suggested the Municipality should conduct a field study that determines the types of building materials that can be reused and study the local market to know how they will deal with them. “The Municipality must determine materials that can be reused, such as doors, windows and sanitaryware, and other materials that can be recycled, such as iron, glass, and bricks,” she said. The proposal addressed the need to determine the concerned entities and companies that will use recycled materials and specialized contractors in the field of construction to dismantle and extract the materials.

Shalfan added the Municipality should define related terms and determine suitable buildings to which the regulation applies and the materials that can be reused and recycled, along with dealing with residual waste.“Also, it should determine the categories of reusing and recycling materials and the ways of dealing with them to maintain their value. In addition, it should study how to deal with dangerous materials. It should also preserve the rights of the owner of the building to use or sell the materials. It should also issue a demolition permit and impose penalties in the event of any violation,” the proposal added.