Understanding Sustainability

Why sustainable waste management matters for construction projects

Waste is a part of your business’s everyday operations; the construction industry generates millions of tonnes of waste every year, and how it’s handled has a big impact on natural resources, local communities and the environment.

Managing these materials isn’t just about compliance. It’s also about creating value from resources that might otherwise be discarded.

• A well-planned recycling strategy can help businesses:
• Reduce disposal and landfill costs
• Improve recycling and recovery rates
• Meet client sustainability targets
• Support environmental compliance
• Reduce carbon emissions
• Improve tender competitiveness
• Demonstrate ESG performance

With over 25 years of industry experience, more than 200 completed projects, and over 2 million tonnes of material recycled every year, we help businesses find better ways to meet both their commercial and environmental objectives through sustainable waste management.

Here’s how Recycling First can help

When you’re planning a construction project, it’s easy to focus on what’s being built and overlook the materials being excavated or removed from site. However, understanding exactly what those materials are and how they can be managed often has a major impact on both project costs and programme timelines.

Our team works with contractors, developers and project managers to identify the most practical and cost-effective route for managing soils and other excavated materials. In many cases, materials that may initially be considered as waste have opportunities for reuse, recovery or treatment, helping businesses reduce disposal costs and cut down on the amount of material sent to landfill.

We’ll guide you through the classification process, advise on testing where required, and help you understand what options are available for managing waste sustainably for your project. By looking at materials early, we can help save time, reduce unnecessary expenditure and avoid compliance issues further down the line.

Every site is different, which is why we take a project-specific approach. Whether you’re managing a housing development, infrastructure scheme, commercial build or remediation project, we’ll help you find a solution that works for your project and environmental objectives.