Civil Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
• compressed earth as a construction material
• fibres from the seaweed eelgrass as an insulating material
• increased use of timber from deciduous trees.
A series of different sorts of waste from industry, agriculture and dwellings, e.g.
straw, industrial sulphur and waste glass, can also be evaluated.
Increased exploitation of rich fields of resources
Not all resources are being totally exhausted. An example is stone, which is still
a plentiful resource over the whole earth; another is blue clay, which has great
potential and is in no way exhausted by the comparatively low production of
bricks. The side-effects that the excavation of minerals exerts on their immediate
environment, e.g. lowering the water table, damaging local ecological systems,
must be taken into account.
Increased use of renewable resources
Many building components made from mineral raw materials have organic alter-
natives, e.g. timber can be used as an alternative to steel. This usually has an
overall positive environmental impact.
Increased recycling of waste products during production
A series of good examples already show that this method can save valuable
resources, such as the manufacture of plasterboard. Re-use of water in the produc-
tion processes of certain industries also occurs, e.g. production of ceramic tiles.
Reduction of the use of resources in the building process
and during building use
In these two phases there are the following possibilities for reducing the use of
resources:
• to build with an economic use of materials
• to minimize loss and wastage of materials on site
• to use the materials in such a way as to ensure their durability
• to maximize re-use and recycling of materials from demolition.
Economical construction
Every structural system has its specific use of materials. The difference between
systems can be quite significant. A lattice beam uses much less material than a
solid beam, whether it is timber or steel.
