Figure 5: New products produced by recycling waste materials
(Solid Waste and Public Cleansing Management Corporation, 2015)
iii. Recycling
v. Disposal
Other waste materials that cannot be reused
directly could be transformed into new products
through recycling. Recycling involves the collection,
reprocessing and remanufacturing of waste
materials and using them again as recycled
products. Recycling can reduce the depletion of
landfill space, save energy and natural resources,
provide useful products and provide economic
benefits. Currently, there is a growing concern for
recycling and the global environment. Recycling is
specified in the 11th MP as an approach that will
reduce the development of new landfills. (See
Figure 5)
For materials that cannot be re-used and recycled,
disposal to landfill is the last resort based on the
waste hierarchy. Therefore, it is important to ensure
that the waste is handled by the authorised party
that operates a legal dumping site approved by the
National Solid Waste Management Department and
the Solid Waste and Public Cleansing Management
Corporation (SWCorp). Disposal of hazardous
waste should be managed carefully and subject to
Environmental Quality Act, 1974 (Act 127) (Ministry
of Natural Resources and Environment, 1974).
However, it is crucial to understand that hazardous
waste is not covered by the Solid Waste and
Public Cleansing Management Act, 672 (Ministry
of Housing and Local Government, 2007) and,
therefore should follow the requirement stated in
the Environmental Quality Act, 1974 (Act 127).
Note:
For the list of waste materials that can be
recycled, please refer to Appendix 2- Garis
Panduan Pengurusan Sisa Pepejal Pembinaan
Di Tapak Bina (Solid Waste and Public Cleansing
Management Corporation, 2015).
iv. Other recovery
This stage can be defined as the exclusion of
waste materials from recycling through certain
processes (anaerobic digestion or incineration
with energy recovery), which produce energy (fuel,
heat and power) or backfilling.
Construction Waste Management Life
Cycle
A closed-loop approach to sustainable construction
waste management can provide value at every
phase of a building life cycle. Figure 6 shows
a systematic process for construction waste
management based on the closed-loop approach.
Waste management will be discussed according to
a ‘cradle to cradle’ approach.
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