UWW construction site recognized for recycling
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A construction worker throws a wooden pallet into one of several designated bins outside of the construction site of the new College of Business and Economics building at UW-Whitewater. The project recently was awarded for its efforts in recycling building materials that came from the demolition of the old residence halls that once stood on the site.
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The new UW-Whitewater School of Business and Economics under construction on Starin Rd.
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The new UW-Whitewater College of Business and Economics building has a 4story atrium for it's main entrance.
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Visitors to UW-Whitewater's new College of Business and Economics building, still under construction, visit a second floor room that is designed to allow students to learn about the business of the stock market.
WHITEWATER — The demolition of three former residence halls to make room for the new College of Business and Economics building at UW-Whitewater has been recognized as a model for recycling.
Nearly 98 percent of the waste that came from the demolition of Baker, Salisbury and Sayles halls was recycled, including steel beams, concrete blocks and aluminum window frames.
The building project, managed by Miron Construction, received the 2007 Big Diverter Award from WasteCap Wisconsin, a nonprofit organization that provides waste reduction and recycling assistance to businesses, for achieving the highest recycling rate among current projects.
“It’s just part of this job,” said Marv Hazlett, project superintendent.
The UW-Whitewater project is the first of five on UW System campuses that advance the governor’s initiative to require construction and demolition debris recycling on all state projects. The state is working with WasteCap to develop guidelines for contractors on state projects.
“We do things that make sense environmentally and economically,” said Jenna Kunde, executive director of WasteCap.
Demolition of the former residence halls began in June 2007 and finished in August.
WasteCap trained workers to separate waste, coordinated with local haulers to accept and recycle the waste and regularly monitored the site.
Concrete block was transported to Mann Brothers in Elkhorn, where it was ground and used as road base and aggregate for new concrete. Wood was taken to Compost Management in Delavan, where it was shredded and used as landscaping mulch. Bottles, cans and office paper were recycled at Southern Lakes Recycling in Elkhorn.
A total of 13,694 tons of demolition waste were recycled.
Randy Marnocha, vice chancellor of administrative affairs at UW-Whitewater, said the project reflects the university’s commitment to sustainability.
“It’s a statement of our values,” he said.
The recycling continues with the construction of the new Timothy J. Hyland Hall. The goal is to recycle 75 percent of construction waste, including drywall, metal and cardboard. The project is currently at a 71 percent recycling rate.
A local farmer is using scrap drywall for fertilizer because it contains calcium and sulfur. Scrap metal and cardboard packaging are recycled.
To date, 258 tons of construction waste have been recycled.
Hazlett said recycling on the site has been “pretty easy.”
“We just have to separate it out,” he said.
Hyland Hall is scheduled for completion in spring 2009.
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