Book Touts “Restoration Economy”

Renovation, restoration, building material re-use and C&D materials recycling are portrayed as a massive and growing industry in the book, The Restoration Economy, authored by Storm Cunningham, editor of a quarterly journal devoted to the subject.

According to Cunningham, $1 trillion worth of renovation and restorative activity may be taking place annually on a global scale already, but building renovation and site redevelopment are not perceived as one connected industry.

Cunningham’s book covers environmental topics such as watershed restoration that are fairly far removed from using recycled aggregates at urban building sites. But he makes the case that the two are connected in the same way that land clearing contractors and real estate companies both perceive themselves as land developers.

In his book, published by Berrett-Koehler Publishers Inc., San Francisco, Cunningham makes a case that popular support has already shifted away from the new development of farmland and forested land toward the restorative development of existing buildings and existing plots in settled areas.

The book carries an endorsement from former Indianapolis mayor William Hudnut III, who says it “points us toward restorative development as a smarter, more economically compelling alternative to sprawling new development.”

The author stresses economic and business-related reasons why the trend is taking place. The book’s full title is, The Restoration Economy: The Greatest New Growth Frontier: Immediate & Emerging Opportunities for Businesses, Communities & Investors.