In 2014, the Sacramento, California-based Recycling Certification Institute (RCI) began overseeing the Certification of Recycling Rates (CORR) Protocol. RCI developed the CORR Protocol to International Organization of Standardization (ISO)-level standards as a way to help construction and demolition (C&D) recyclers meet the industry’s growing need for reliable recycling and recovery rates verified through a third-party audit—the idea being that with a little oversight, the C&D recycling industry would gain more legitimacy through transparency.
Now, five years later, two dozen recycling lines across the country (and counting) have earned certification.
While the ability to verify rates is undoubtedly a major boon to the credibility of the industry, the potential drawbacks are apparent thanks to a playing field that isn’t completely level.
In “Understanding RCI certification for C&D recyclers” of this issue, RCI’s Executive Director Stephen Bantillo discusses how the ability for non-certified facilities to win LEED-related work based on self-reported numbers may be hurting those facilities that have been verified.
“Certified facilities have expressed frustration that the [U.S. Green Building Council] is still accepting the self-reported recycling rates of all facilities around them that haven’t been certified,” he says. “Many believe that the facilities might be making up these recycling rates or inflating their numbers.”
The answer, according to Bantillo, is for the USGBC to mandate that a facility’s recycling rates be verified prior to awarding points for specific LEED projects.
“If they’re focusing on performance, then their rating system [should be set up] to accept only clarified numbers. Otherwise, there’s the potential that as they begin to calculate the environmental benefits and greenhouse gas emission reductions of green building projects, they could be misreporting those numbers,” Bantillo says.
In an age when a growing number of local and state governments are pushing for green and zero-waste legislation to cut down on the proliferation of waste to landfill, the ability to have greater certainty related to C&D diversion seems to be something of interest not just for recyclers, but also for entire communities.
However, until legislators and those in charge of oversight make some type of certification mandatory, the question has to be asked as to whether those who get certified are doing the noble thing while potentially sacrificing their greater business interests. Despite this issue, Bantillo says that certification ultimately gives recyclers something that is hard to top—objectivity.
“It’s not just the recycling facilities, but the contractors and builders who can benefit when a recycler gets certified,” he says. “They like to have a certified facility in their area where they can get verified recovery rates for their projects because they want to know how they’re doing in terms of diversion, as well. … For the recyclers, this certification can set them apart from other facilities ... with whom they are competing. They want their customers to know that they’ve gone through the verification process and that their numbers are accurate.”
To read more, check out “Understanding RCI certification for C&D recyclers.”
Scrop Iron: Reported United States aggregated spot market prices per gross ton shown for each commodity are based on all Management Science Associates’ (MSA) Raw Material Data Aggregation Service (RMDAS) participants’ actual order data submitted to and processed by MSA as of the 20th of each respective “buy month,” rounded to the whole integer. A map of RMDAS regions is available at http://rmdas.msa.com, as is a further explanation of RMDAS methodology and an accompanying disclaimer.
No. 1 HMS defined as prepared obsolete scrap, 5 feet long and under. Additional pricing information on each grade can be found at www.RecyclingToday.com.
Copper - LME Pricing: Source: London Metal Exchange, www.lme.com
Aluminum - LME Pricing: Source: London Metal Exchange, www.lme.com
Stone and Aggregate Pricing: *Index is based on 1982 average price as 100; Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Wood Scrap: Source: North American Wood Fiber Review; Detailed pricing and analysis for California and other U.S. regions is available by subscription at www.woodprices.com.
A striking success
Features - Cover Story
How Stryker DES navigated hazardous waste and other safety challenges to demolish a Virginia waste-to-energy facility.
From left: Mark Klotzbach Jr., vice president of Stryker DES, and Mark Klotzbach Sr., president of Stryker DES.
Portrait by parikha mehta
Every demolition job comes with inherent risks and potential complications, but some projects simply require more thorough planning and greater diligence than others.
The final closure of the Harrisonburg Resource Recovery Facility (RRF) in Harrisonburg, Virginia, was one such project.
The Harrisonburg RRF, which opened in 1982, was a waste-to-energy facility owned and operated by the city of Harrisonburg’s Department of Public Works that helped convert the region’s municipal solid waste (MSW) into steam used to heat and cool nearby James Madison University’s campus. In addition to providing steam, the RRF served to reduce the volume of solid waste requiring disposal in the local municipal landfill. The facility, which took in 200 tons per day of the area’s waste, closed in 2015.
After closing, the city planned to decommission and partially demolish the plant and sell the site to the university. In early 2016, the city solicited proposals for the implementation phase of the closure. Stryker Demolition & Environmental Services LLC (Stryker DES), based in Wayne, Pennsylvania, was selected from a pool of multiple companies to be the lone contractor on the job as part of the competitive bidding process.
According to Mark Klotzbach Sr., president of Stryker DES, the final closure of the site was carried out in five main phases: removal of the remaining waste inventory consisting of both MSW and waste ash; characterization of waste residues to determine proper handling and disposal methods; removing and/or decontaminating equipment, ductwork, building structures or other materials containing or contaminated with waste residues using a combination of wash-down and vacuum methods; review and certification from a registered professional engineer that the closure was completed in accordance with the approved plan; and obtaining Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (VDEQ) approval of the closure.
Cranes were utilized to pick sections of the facility. Sections of the exhaust stack had to be cut in sections and lowered with a crane.
secondary photos provided by Stryker DES
Weighing the risks
According to Klotzbach Sr., before the actual demolition work could begin, his team had to ensure it was taking the proper precautions related to the health, safety and welfare of all personnel on-site.
Due to the amount of regulatory involvement and oversight from the VDEQ, he says this project required a more comprehensive and formalized program and procedures when it came to not only planning the project, but also carrying out the decommissioning and demolition. In addition to the typical work plans, such as a health and safety plan and demolition permitting, Stryker DES prepared additional documents that included demolition implementation plans, client-specific Activity Hazard Analysis (AHA), decontamination work plans, emergency action plans, waste sampling and waste management plans, a rinsate-specific sampling plan, and dust suppression and air monitoring plans to help negate the potential for safety complications on the job.
According to Klotzbach Sr., while the job involved a number of risks, dealing with hazardous waste contamination from years of municipal waste processing was the primary concern.
“An enormous amount of planning and work plans were developed prior to mobilization,” he says. “The demolition strategy was to maintain the safety of our project team and minimize the generation of additional waste streams while achieving proper regulatory closure. Cadmium waste was encountered during implementation. The cadmium waste deposits had been generated from household batteries that were commingled with the municipal waste over the years. There was also lead present from historical site operations, so those were two exposures that we were very keen on.”
At times, sequestering this hazardous waste required the use of water. However, Stryker DES was mindful of limiting its water use so as not to generate large amounts of hazardous waste via the spread of contamination. To achieve this goal, they employed vacuum methods and only introduced water when needed.
Klotzbach Sr. says Stryker DES implemented various engineering controls, such as ensuring the site had adequate ventilation, and conducted a robust personnel monitoring program for employees.
He notes that Stryker DES worked in close conjunction with the city and the engineering team hired to oversee the demolition and verify the company was in compliance throughout the project.
“This decontamination and closure of the site required a lot of coordination between the engineers the city had hired, Draper Aden Associates, and the city of Harrisonburg,” Klotzbach Sr. says. “This coordination centered around the VDEQ’s closure requirements. The closure requirements were extensive and took a lot of detail to get right. We did a lot of sampling—hundreds of samples went out—to document what we did, the level of cleanliness we were maintaining, and then what we did for the actual closure report itself.”
Torches were utilized as part of the demolition process and to further size building materials when lowered to the ground.
Demolition duties
Once the team completed decontamination and final wipe and waste sampling, Mark Klotzbach Jr., vice president of Stryker DES, says the company went to work bringing down the structure via various methods. Heavy equipment such as forklifts, aerial lifts, skid steers and loaders were used for much of the dismantlement, but it was the team’s hydraulic cranes ranging in weight from 60-150 tons that were tasked with much of the heavy lifting.
“The facility had a 150 foot-tall stack that was of a unique design. There was a lot of ductwork, cyclones and economizers that had to be removed from the facility. There was a significant selective dismantlement component that required the use of cranes and rigging techniques. We utilized multiple cranes during this phase of the project to gain access to the stack and to remove multiple sections at a time. At times, the cranes had to work in conjunction to maximize efficiency,” Klotzbach Jr. says.
For more nuanced parts of the job and much of the decontamination work, smaller pieces of equipment such as torches, HEPA vacuum trucks, and various hand tools were used. Klotzbach Jr. says at times, the crew needed to take a more granular approach to the demolition.
“When possible, areas of the site were removed by mechanical means. This was the preferred approach. In other instances, we unbolted various components of the structures and removed them. We also used reciprocating saws and torches,” Klotzbach Jr. says. “We were in a facility that was still operational in parts, so we had to be very careful what we were doing because there was a lot of live equipment. We had to be very mindful of not interfering with any of the operating equipment or any lines that were live.”
In addition to avoiding other workers and operations at the facility, Klotzbach Sr. says Stryker DES had to be cautious of the RRF's layout.
“There were multiple levels in this facility, and as we went through and removed parts of the building and various equipment, having proper fall protection was a major priority for us,” he says. “We also minimized fall hazards by covering holes in the floors that were left as a result of the equipment we had removed. In some instances, railings needed to be removed to gain access to a certain piece of equipment slated for dismantlement. In those instances, we installed temporary railings. Crane safety was another major focal point for this project. We needed to understand each of the crane’s lift capacity. During the planning phase of the project, we made sure to calculate the weights of what we would be lifting before we rigged something to the crane to make sure we were not putting our team or equipment at risk.”
Crews needed to work at heights from man lifts at times to gain access to portions of the facility or to conduct demolition.
Stryker sustainability
Klotzbach Sr. says because demolition results in a wealth of metals, recycling was of paramount importance on the Harrisonburg RRF. But it was only through rigorous decontamination and testing that the company was able to keep this once-hazardous material out of Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) landfills.
“We were, of course, required to recycle only metal that was clean or decontaminated and showed no presence of waste on it—that was mandated through the testing,” he says. “We took out approximately 600 gross tons of carbon steel. We had a little bit of nonferrous with some copper we pulled out and a little bit of stainless steel, but it wasn’t very much. Most of it was plate, structural and No. 1 steel, and we recycled 100 percent of this.”
Beyond the metals recycling facet of the job, Klotzbach Sr. says a sustainability mindset filtered through other aspects of the project.
“While we recycled 100 percent of our metals, there were other significant portions of this project that also met the category of sustainability,” he says. “Water use was minimized so as to not generate large additional volumes of hazardous waste. In order to minimize water use, vacuum methods were employed and water was only introduced when needed. Our decontamination water was captured and strictly controlled. We containerized it, sampled it and then we sent it out for treatment.
“Additionally, because of our decontamination efforts, which were conducted prior to demolition, Stryker DES was able to prevent cadmium- and lead-containing waste from being released to the environment during demolition. Finally, all equipment that could be reused or salvaged—such as the facility’s existing turbine generator—was dismantled and loaded for use by a third party once decontamination efforts were completed. This was not only sustainable, it aided in offsetting implementation costs for our client.”
Finally, Klotzbach Sr. says the project “exemplified the definition of community enhancement,” since Stryker DES not only prevented environmental contamination during the project, but also helped ensure a greener Harrisonburg in the future.
A study in excellence
After multiple mobilizations and phases, Stryker DES completed the job over the course of two years. Stryker DES personnel logged approximately 220 working days of on-site time, with crew sizes ranging from six to 23 dependent on the specific phase of the project, in addition to a full-time construction manager. When all was said and done, the Stryker DES crew worked nearly 30,000 field hours without a recordable injury.
“I have to say, this was a really great job. It was difficult because it was complex in that we had no margin for error and had to do everything correctly for the closure and to ensure that no one got hurt,” Klotzbach Sr. says. “I’m proud to say we had zero injuries on the job. We also complied with the closure plan expertly—everything that was required of us to perform for sampling and for documentation purposes, we were on top of. And believe me, that was a lot. The closure report was over 500 pages due to the sheer scope of work on the job.”
Klotzbach Jr. gives credit to the city and state regulators for helping streamline the demolition. For a project that could have easily been hindered by regulatory red tape, he says that government officials and engineering personnel from Draper Aden Associates helped guide the project along thanks to transparent and open communication.
“The success of the project was a testament to the city and state, their knowledge, and overall engineering oversight,” he says. “They were very familiar with the protocol and their communication was just exceptional. They really laid the groundwork for a great working relationship to exist between Stryker DES, the city and state, and Draper Aden Associates.”
Stryker DES’s work on the Harrisonburg RRF did not go unnoticed. Thanks to their due diligence, exemplary safety record and emphasis on recycling, the project earned the company recognition by the National Demolition Association (NDA). In 2019, the association awarded Stryker DES with the Excellence in Demolition top award for projects between $501,000-$2 million in scope.
“We’re extremely appreciative of the award, but it was truly a team effort,” Klotzbach Sr. says. “A lot of people use that phrase, but I think sometimes companies are prone to just go about doing their project trying to get it done as quickly as possible so they can go home. The Harrisonburg RRF wasn’t like that for Stryker DES. We knew the importance of getting this right. It took a lot to work through all the closure requirements and check all the regulatory boxes, but our team did everything by the book, and I couldn’t be more proud of what we were able to do.”
The author is the editor for Construction & Demolition Recycling magazine and can be contacted at aredling@gie.net.
Deconstructing for good
Features - Deconstruction
Stardust Building Supplies is a nonprofit filling a gap in traditional demolition services by deconstructing homes first to divert material from landfill and benefit the community.
Lived-in buildings can contain a treasure trove of items. From cabinetry and countertops to flooring and furniture, a multitude of items within a structure's walls are often salvageable either for reuse or recycling.
But when these buildings are remodeled, the wealth of salvageable materials and furnishings can be lost to landfill if entire rooms are haphazardly demolished.
Arizona philanthropist Jerry Bisgrove, the founder of the Scottsdale-based Stardust Companies group of organizations, recognized the value of items in his home. Before undertaking a complete home remodeling and demolition in the mid-1990s, he told a friend to take whatever she wanted from the house. To his surprise, she had cleared out nearly everything usable, from cabinets and plumbing fixtures to lighting and electrical supplies.
The experience inspired Bisgrove to found Stardust Building Supplies in 1997. Stardust is a nonprofit organization based in Mesa, Arizona, that provides deconstruction services. After a building is deconstructed, Stardust sells the salvaged material in its two reuse centers. Every year, the organization not only diverts 5 million tons of material from landfill, says Stardust CEO Karen Jayne, but also works to advocate for the wider acceptance of deconstruction practices.
“Not only does it save [customers] money, but it really does help people in the community who might not have access to full-price home remodeling materials. And then it also helps reduce the waste that goes into our landfill, especially with things that are in good condition and great to reuse,” Jayne says.
Sorting through material
Stardust owns two reuse centers in Arizona where it stores its material—a 44,000-square-foot warehouse in East Valley and a 27,000-square-foot warehouse in Glendale.
There, the organization houses its material that comes in from both donations and its deconstruction services. On any given day, material at the facilities can range from traditional construction and demolition (C&D) material, like brick, concrete block and hardwood flooring, to interior and exterior fixtures, like appliances, plumbing, fencing, furniture and electrical supplies.
The organization employs 32 people, 10 of whom work daily to either to deconstruct buildings, pick up donations or sort through material in the warehouses. Those working in the warehouse require meticulous attention to detail to determine which items they can accept and the value of each. Typically, two staff members work in each receiving area to help unload donations. They then assess each item for its quality, style, size, age and functionality. Employees scrap items that don’t work and assign prices to those that do.
“They use a price book we have established that identifies a grading process that goes through what the price would be for that item,” Jayne says. “We use a point of sale system, so they enter the donations into the point of sale system and make what we call a receiving voucher. And then that spits out the tickets that actually go on each item. So the receiving staff tags the items, and then the materials are moved out onto the sales floor.”
Jayne says on top of working with low-income housing owners and other nonprofit organizations to find homes for the material, more than 3,000 customers shop through the warehouses each month.
“There are individuals who are renovating their homes, so they use us for materials that are more economically priced for them. There are also a large number of landlords who use us as a resource to repair and maintain their properties. Then there are some general contractors and handymen that actually do maintenance repairs for homeowners, and there is a group of reuse folks that use our materials for various creative projects,” Jayne says.
Deconstruction at your service
On top of accepting donations, Stardust also offers deconstruction services for homeowners and commercial properties at a low cost. Jayne says a typical deconstruction costs about $200. In 2018, the Stardust crew performed nearly 750 deconstruction jobs, which normally take between one to four hours each.
“Monday through Friday, we have deconstruction teams that are out in the community removing usable material, mostly from homes that are being remodeled, and they do up to four jobs a day,” Jayne says.
The organization typically receives calls for services from individual homeowners. More recently, however, Stardust has begun collaborating with contractors to remove valuable material before they sweep through the area to provide heavier demo services. In an initiative called “Starve the Landfill,” Stardust has begun publicly recognizing the contractors it works with in these endeavors in an attempt to encourage more to participate.
“They get recognition on our website, and we do social media posts about them. We also link from our website to their website or social media [pages], and we also share that in press releases, especially when they're new to the program,” Jayne says. “When they need us to come pick up a donation or if we're deconstructing for them, they'll also get special treatment to get on [our] schedule.”
Stardust owns a fleet of five box trucks that the deconstruction crew uses to transport material to and from the site. The organization’s deconstruction services are fairly limited, as it can’t provide heavier services like removing flooring or drywall. Its crew primarily uses handheld tools like crowbars, hammers and screwdrivers. Additionally, crews can’t deconstruct any homes built before 1978 due to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) lead paint rules.
The material they do recover, however, can be high in value.
“There are pockets of areas here that have very high-end, multimillion dollar homes. We've definitely deconstructed large homes with multiple kitchens and multiple buildings on-site. We've removed solid gold plumbing fixtures, and we've removed an elevator from one job—also things like solid marble, fireplace mantles, large chandeliers and all those kinds of things,” Jayne says.
An important step
Though demolition is often still needed after Stardust's deconstruction services, it’s an important step that can both make demolition easier and provide a variety of benefits to the community and environment.
The city of Portland, Oregon, has set up an online deconstruction calculator tool to calculate the benefits associated with deconstruction versus demolition. According to a recent calculation of a 2,800-square-foot home, deconstructing saves more than 1,800 kilowatt hours of electricity, releases 24 fewer tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere and generates six jobs for every one job in demolition. Deconstruction also requires less dust suppression than traditional demolition, saving hundreds of gallons of water per job, according to Build Reuse (previously the Building Materials Reuse Association), which advocates for turning C&D waste into local resources.
Thanks to its benefits, communities have started to recognize the importance of deconstruction. Portland and Milwaukee, for instance, now require some structures to be fully deconstructed rather than mechanically demolished to salvage material and reduce waste. The city of Palo Alto, California, has similar regulations that are set to take effect in 2020.
Additionally, Stardust is working with the city of Phoenix as well as the state of Arizona in an attempt to promote deconstruction practices locally. Jayne says the organization will soon be launching a campaign with a video that educates the public about deconstruction and its benefits. Stardust is also working with local planning committees to explore ways to incentivize the practice throughout the state.
“People don't know about deconstruction, so it's always a challenge to educate folks on the benefits and how important it is—not only how it saves them money in their remodeling projects, but also how it keeps usable material out of the landfill that someone else can use and benefit from,” Jayne says. “I think people don't realize that it's expensive for a large segment of our community to maintain their homes, and reuse really provides that avenue for a lot of people.”
The author is the assistant editor for Construction & Demolition Recycling magazine and can be reached at tcottom@gie.net.
Adam Redling
