Any home renovation project, no matter how small, requires building materials. Upon completion of these projects, however, some of this material is left unused. These remnants of building materials (e.g., bricks, concrete, timber, steel), general trash, and even contaminated soil, become a pile of leftover rubbish that needs to be cleared.
Plan Ahead for Your Home Renovation
Despite what you may think, building sustainably is not just about using sustainable materials. A big part of it is also about reducing waste, and we must be intentional throughout the entire process, keeping the end in mind before carrying out a home renovation project. Whether you’re carrying out a minor repair, or a major undertaking, your project will result in some rubbish. Before you begin, it’s important to plan for how you’ll deal with it once your project is finished by setting up a waste management plan.
Are There Any Legal Considerations for Renovation Rubbish Disposal?
The Australian building industry produces a whopping 27 million tonnes of waste each year, so it shouldn’t come as a surprise that the Australian government has strict legal obligations and regulations regarding waste disposal. This, of course, includes your home renovation rubbish.
How to Practice Responsible Renovation Rubbish Disposal
Reusing Renovation Rubbish
Before tossing out your leftover materials wholesale, look at what you could reuse for other projects. That spare bucket of paint could be used to give your bedroom a refreshing new look, and those extra 2x4 wood planks can be used to patch up a hole in the fence. Reusing these materials in practical or creative ways helps you save money and prevents waste.
Recycling Renovation Rubbish
Most materials in renovation rubbish such as metals, glass, plastics, and concrete can be recycled instead of being part of another landfill. The EPA reported in 2019-2020 that over 75% (9.6 million tonnes) of waste generated through building activities was recycled. Contact your local council to find recycling centres or local waste service providers like Ridly to join recycling efforts.
Donating Renovation Rubbish
If you can’t find a use for your excess building materials, you can always donate them to someone else who might. Some community and non-profit organisations accept building materials as donations which will be used to provide the less fortunate with what they need for home building.
Landfill Disposal of Renovation Rubbish
Disposing of your renovation rubbish at a landfill should be a last resort, but it is sometimes the necessary course of action for materials that are too dangerous or toxic to reuse, recycle, or donate. You should take extra care when handling these materials and consider the use of waste management services to assist you in the disposal process.
Handle Renovation Rubbish the Right Way
When we’re busy building and renovating our homes, it’s easy to toss the idea of sustainable rubbish disposal into the bin. But if we do so, our precious environment will suffer the consequences, and so will we, in the years to come.
It can seem like a daunting task, but it doesn’t have to be. Simply consider the alternatives that we’ve outlined above when deciding what to do with your renovation rubbish:
- Reuse your leftover materials for other projects. Get creative!
- Recycle materials to prevent unnecessary wastage.
- Donate excess materials to others who need them.
Just completed a home renovation or building project and unsure of where to begin with your renovation rubbish? Ridly is fully equipped to handle your renovation rubbish disposal needs in a responsible and efficient way. Just give us a call and we will come right to you – wherever you’re located in Sydney.