15 months of war on Gaza were enough to turn its streets into huge piles of rubble that were part of buildings within whose walls more than 2 million peoples lived.
The search for solutions to rebuild Gaza raises the question of the feasibility of recycling those huge tons of rubble and using it again to restore the destroyed infrastructure.
42 million tons of debris
الأكثر قراءة
According to a report issued by the UN, the amount of rubble that must be disposed of in Gaza to begin the reconstruction process has reached 42 million tons of rubble. The report also indicated that removing this huge amount of rubble will take about 14 years, at a cost exceeding one billion dollars.
The presence of these huge tons of rubble containing toxic compounds such as mercury and lead in the streets of the Strip means the continuation of a long list of environmental crises, starting with the spread of dust and dirt in the air, and the pollution of the soil, making it unsuitable for agriculture, in addition to the pollution of drinking water sources, and health damages, including respiratory diseases.
Source: Reuters
Recycling demolition waste combats global warming
Recycling demolition waste contributes to combating global warming, reducing the depletion of the Earth’s natural resources, and reducing the environmental damage caused by the construction sector, which contributes more than 30% of greenhouse gas emissions released into the atmosphere, due to the reliance on building materials whose production causes large quantities of emissions, such as steel and cement.
The traditional construction sector also consumes large amounts of fresh water to manufacture cement and concrete, and destroys the environment by relying on deforestation to extract timber; therefore, recycling rubble is an effective alternative to solve climate and environmental problems.
Recycling steps begin with collecting construction waste and transporting it to recycling sites, then sorting it by the relevant authorities and separating the reusable waste such as “concrete, metals and wood” from the waste, then treating it to become suitable for construction operations after ensuring its re-usability, and finally storing it in an organized manner to be ready for use again.
Is rubble recycling safe for humans?
According to a study conducted by Professor Abdul Qader Rashwani - Assistant Professor at the University of Sham in Syria and a concrete expert - in collaboration with researchers from different countries, concrete recycled from rubble is safe to use in construction operations.
The study, published in the journal "Materials in Civil Engineering" in 2023, relied on the results of passing several tests within the structural safety standards, including: Overload resistance test, corrosion resistance test, and flexural resistance test. The condition for the validity of using recycled concrete from rubble is that it is processed according to the required engineering standards.
Despite these studies proving that it is safe to reuse, the World Health Organization confirmed in a report the importance of dealing with rubble with caution due to the presence of toxic materials such as asbestos, which leads to all types of cancer. All necessary precautions must be taken when dealing with these materials so that they do not lead to a health problem.
How can we benefit from recycled materials from rubble?
Construction of new buildings
After recycling and processing some of it, such as concrete and wood. An example of this is what the engineers Folke Koberling and Martin Kaltwasser did in 2008, when they succeeded in building a theatre at the Arts Center in the United Kingdom using 400 recycled wooden panels.
Road and infrastructure construction
After concrete and bricks are extracted from demolition waste, they are crushed and used in the lower layers of roads. For example, 69.4% of construction waste in Germany was used in road construction.
Production of new building materials
Construction waste can be converted into new materials such as bricks or tiles, helping to reduce the consumption of natural resources.
Economic benefits
The best solution to solve the rubble problem in Gaza is to recycle it and use it in reconstruction, road construction and infrastructure. From an economic perspective, this process will reduce the cost of importing new building materials, and will provide new and different job opportunities in the field of rubble recycling. From an environmental perspective, recycling rubble will reduce the environmental damage resulting from the accumulation of waste.
Rebuilding Gaza is not easy, but the dream of recycling rubble could open up horizons of hope for the people of Gaza. To ensure that this process is carried out safely and effectively, funding and support from the relevant authorities and international organizations, and the provision of huge equipment is required. Will Gaza receive enough support to help it achieve its dream?
