tag:theconversation.com,2011:/id/topics/demolition-25228/articlesDemolition – The Conversation2023-06-06T02:21:12Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2061882023-06-06T02:21:12Z2023-06-06T02:21:12ZBuilding activity produces 18% of emissions and a shocking 40% of our landfill waste. We must move to a circular economy – here’s how<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/529530/original/file-20230601-25-k0dgno.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C4475%2C2974&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Architecture, engineering and construction employ <a href="https://doi.org/10.1108/SASBE-10-2020-0154">1.2 million people</a> in Australia and account for <a href="https://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-2983477707">9% of GDP</a>. But our biggest services sector also produces roughly <a href="https://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-2983477707">40% of landfill waste</a> and accounts for <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.proeng.2017.04.180">18.1% of Australia’s carbon footprint</a>. The sector must change its practices fast for Australia to meet its commitments to cut emissions under the Paris Agreement. </p>
<p>A circular economic model can help solve the environmental challenges created by our built environment – water, waste and power systems, transport infrastructure and the buildings we live and work in. A <a href="https://theconversation.com/explainer-what-is-a-circular-economy-29666">circular economy</a> involves sharing, leasing, reusing, repairing, refurbishing and recycling materials and products for as long as possible. </p>
<p>Circular economy principles have gained recognition from all levels of government in Australia. But there’s a big gap between acknowledgement and action. Progress towards systemic change has been very limited.</p>
<p>A <a href="https://trove.nla.gov.au/work/253896506?keyword=circular%20economy%20deakin">new report</a> by university and industry experts lays out a roadmap to a circular economy. Those working in the sector reported the top three barriers as: a lack of incentives, a lack of specific regulations, and a lack of knowledge. The top three enablers were: research and development of enabling technologies, education of stakeholders, and evidence of the circular economy’s added value. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/australia-needs-construction-waste-recycling-plants-but-locals-first-need-to-be-won-over-161888">Australia needs construction waste recycling plants — but locals first need to be won over</a>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">The huge amount of waste created by building construction and demolition makes the industry unsustainable.</span></figcaption>
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<h2>So what are the world leaders doing?</h2>
<p>Extensive research for the report drew on real-world experiences, including a survey and interviews with stakeholders. The report offers practical recommendations to drive the transformation to a circular economy, with examples from global front-runners.</p>
<p>The first recommendation is to learn from these nations. Most are in Europe.</p>
<p>A leading example is the Netherlands’ “<a href="https://circulareconomy.europa.eu/platform/en/dialogue/existing-eu-platforms/cirkelstad">Cirkelstad</a>”. This national platform connects key players in the transition to a circular economy in major cities. It provides a database of exemplary projects, research and policies, as well as training and advice.</p>
<p>Cirkelstad highlights the importance of broad collaboration, including research organisations. One outcome is the <a href="https://www.cirkelstad.nl/project/city-deal-circulair-conceptueel-bouwen/">City Deal</a> initiative. It has brought together more than 100 stakeholders with the shared goal of making circular construction the norm. They include government bodies, contractors, housing associations, clients, networks, interest groups and knowledge institutions. </p>
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<a href="https://theconversation.com/buildings-used-iron-from-sunken-ships-centuries-ago-the-use-of-recycled-materials-should-be-business-as-usual-by-now-200351">Buildings used iron from sunken ships centuries ago. The use of recycled materials should be business as usual by now</a>
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<p>We rarely see such collaboration in Australia. Connections between government, research and industry practices have been weak. Our universities compete fiercely. </p>
<p>In Denmark and Sweden, rigorous regulations have been effective in promoting circular practices. Denmark has incentives for the use of <a href="https://www2.mst.dk/Udgiv/publications/2019/03/978-87-7038-052-2.pdf">secondary materials</a> such as recycled brick. It also promotes designs that make buildings easy to disassemble. </p>
<p>In Sweden, contractors must give priority to using secondary materials in public projects. Suppliers are <a href="http://doi.org/10.51414/sei2022.026">evaluated based on their environmental impacts</a> </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/a-third-of-our-waste-comes-from-buildings-this-ones-designed-for-reuse-and-cuts-emissions-by-88-147455">A third of our waste comes from buildings. This one's designed for reuse and cuts emissions by 88%</a>
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<p>In Canada, Toronto is notable for its proactive approach. Measures include a cap on upfront carbon emissions for <a href="https://secure.toronto.ca/council/agenda-item.do?item=2023.PH3.19">all new city-owned buildings</a>.</p>
<p>Test beds and pilot projects have proven effective, too. A good example is the UK’s <a href="https://www.brighton.ac.uk/research/research-news/feature/brighton-waste-house.aspx">Waste House</a>. </p>
<p>Waste House was built using more than 85% waste material from households and construction sites. Yet it’s a top-rated low-energy building. The project is an inspiration for architects and builders to challenge conventional construction methods and embrace circular practices. </p>
<p>Much of the focus of Finland’s <a href="https://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/fi/Documents/risk/The%20circular%20city%20in%20Finland.pdf">circular economy initiatives</a> is on construction and urban planning. Various policy tools and incentives encourage the use of recycled or renewable materials in construction. The renovation of Laakso hospital in Helsinki is a notable example.</p>
<p>Strategic zoning of public spaces can also be used to bolster circular economy activities. An example is the repurposing of urban land for activities such as waste sorting.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-to-make-roads-with-recycled-waste-and-pave-the-way-to-a-circular-economy-164997">How to make roads with recycled waste, and pave the way to a circular economy</a>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">The Brighton Waste House was made largely from recycled materials.</span></figcaption>
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<h2>How can Australia create a circular economy?</h2>
<p>Australia has been slow to adopt such measures. There are voluntary schemes, such as <a href="https://new.gbca.org.au/green-star/exploring-green-star/">Green Star</a>, that include emission caps for buildings. However, Australia lacks specific, well-defined requirements to adopt circular economy practices across the built environment sector.</p>
<p>Our report’s recommendations include:</p>
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<li>develop metrics and targets to promote resource efficiency</li>
<li>adopt measurable circular procurement practices for public projects</li>
<li>provide incentives for circular practices</li>
<li>establish technical codes and standards that foster the use of secondary products.</li>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/greenwashing-the-property-market-why-green-star-ratings-dont-guarantee-more-sustainable-buildings-91655">Greenwashing the property market: why 'green star' ratings don't guarantee more sustainable buildings</a>
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<p>The report finds funding for collaborative projects is badly needed too. Regrettably, the Australian built environment is not seen as <a href="https://www.arc.gov.au/funding-research/apply-funding/grant-application/science-and-research-priorities">a research funding priority</a>. But more funding is essential to foster the innovation needed to make the transition to a circular economy. </p>
<p>Innovation can help us reconcile the public demand for spacious homes with sustainable construction practices. We can achieve this through a mix of strategies:</p>
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<li>moving towards modular construction techniques</li>
<li>creating incentives to adopt circular design principles</li>
<li>making adaptive reuse of existing structures a priority</li>
<li>designing multi-functional spaces that makes the most of resources.</li>
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<p>Integrating circular economy principles into education and training at universities and schools can embed a culture of innovation. Equipping students with this knowledge and skills will enable the next generation to drive change in our built environment. </p>
<p>Currently, there are few Australian-based training programs that focus on the circular economy. And available courses and programs overseas are costly.</p>
<p>There is also a need to promote inclusivity in the built environment sector. Circular solutions must incorporate cultural considerations.</p>
<p>By embracing the above strategies, Australia can foster a harmonious balance between cultural values, environmental sustainability and efficient resource use.</p>
<p>Collectively, these initiatives will lay the foundation for a circular economy in the built environment sector. The growing need for housing and infrastructure underscores the urgency of achieving this goal in Australia. Ultimately, consumers, industry and the environment will all benefit.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/with-the-right-tools-we-can-mine-cities-87672">With the right tools, we can mine cities</a>
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<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Tuba Kocaturk is affiliated with Geelong Manufacturing Council, as a Non-Executive Director.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>M. Reza Hosseini does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Our buildings and infrastructure can only become sustainable if the sector shares, leases, reuses, repairs, refurbishes and recycles materials and products. A new report maps out out how to get there.M. Reza Hosseini, Senior Lecturer in Construction, Deputy Director, Mediated Intelligence in Design (MInD) Research Lab, Deakin UniversityTuba Kocaturk, Deputy Head, School of Architecture & Built Environment, and Director, Mediated Intelligence in Design (MInD) Research Lab, Deakin UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1745612022-01-11T17:09:42Z2022-01-11T17:09:42ZQuébec filmmaker and producer Jean-Marc Vallée told stories of human complexity<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/440085/original/file-20220110-15-10zz1kv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=5%2C0%2C3589%2C2398&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Jean-Marc Vallée attends a press conference to promote the film 'Demolition' at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2015. His unfinished work was an ode to human complexity. </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The death of <a href="https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0885249/">director Jean-Marc Vallée</a> at the age of 58, on Dec. 25, sent shock waves throughout Québec <a href="https://montrealgazette.com/news/local-news/jean-marc-vallee-remembered-as-a-true-artist-and-a-generous-loving-person">and the international film industry</a>. His critically acclaimed work broke many taboos and, combined with his unique esthetic, made Vallée an important artist of our time.</p>
<p>As a doctoral student in literature and performing and screen arts, my research lies at the intersection of feminist, film and television studies. In this article, I focus on Vallée’s cinematic style, which is deeply rooted in empathy.</p>
<h2>An esthetic of simplicity</h2>
<p>Vallée became known to Québec filmgoers with the release of his feature film <em>Liste Noire</em> (1995), but it was <em>C.R.A.Z.Y.</em> (2005) that propelled him to international fame. </p>
<p>This family drama set in the ‘70s continues to move viewers with the heartbreaking father-son relationship it depicts. But the film is slightly different from Vallée’s subsequent work. <a href="https://ici.radio-canada.ca/tele/tout-le-monde-en-parle/site/episodes/593617/jean-marc-vallee-entrevue-films-hommage">By the director’s own admission</a>, the film is loaded with visual effects and technical features that were meant to demonstrate his love of filmmaking.</p>
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<img alt="Jean-Marc Vallée and Pierre Even" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/439503/original/file-20220105-15-yp1ccr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/439503/original/file-20220105-15-yp1ccr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=447&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/439503/original/file-20220105-15-yp1ccr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=447&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/439503/original/file-20220105-15-yp1ccr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=447&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/439503/original/file-20220105-15-yp1ccr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=562&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/439503/original/file-20220105-15-yp1ccr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=562&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/439503/original/file-20220105-15-yp1ccr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=562&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Jean-Marc Vallée and Pierre Even celebrate C.R.A.Z.Y.’s award for best film of the year in 2006 at the Jutras Awards in Montréal.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">THE CANADIAN PRESS/David Boily</span></span>
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<p>Vallée’s style evolved in his later films: the camera was routinely shoulder-mounted, even for static shots. In an interview, Vallée explained that he saw his job as a filmmaker as capturing actors’ performances. Vallée developed the basics for this process in <em>Café de Flore</em> (2011), shooting dialogues using the shot/countershot technique by moving the camera without cutting the recording. This technique, borrowed from direct cinema and documentary, creates a more natural <em>mise en scène</em> where beauty emerges from simplicity.</p>
<p><em>Dallas Buyers Club</em> (2013), which was <a href="https://deadline.com/2014/02/dallas-buyers-club-makeup-oscars-676529/">made on a very low budget</a>, gave Vallée an opportunity to refine this technique. Scenes were shot with natural lighting, without spotlights or other equipment hidden behind the camera, which made it possible to film 360-degree shots. With a handheld camera and a very small film crew, the camera follows the course of the scene according to the movements of the actors, affording them more freedom. </p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">The film ‘Dallas Buyers Club’ starring Matthew McConaughey, allowed Vallée to refine his filming techniques.</span></figcaption>
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<p>This method demonstrated that Vallée allocated as much time as possible on his sets not to technique, but first and foremost to allowing actors to play with the camera, to perform a peculiar dance that places the story at its heart. By accepting a certain level of risk with this approach, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/27/movies/jean-marc-vallee-dead.html">Vallée departed from the canons and rules of traditional filming</a> to provide his films a more organic and unique esthetic.</p>
<h2>Beauty in imperfection</h2>
<p>There is a visual metaphor in <em>Café de Flore</em> that perfectly embodies Vallée’s thematic approach: on several occasions, the protagonist moves away from the camera without leaving the frame. The camera remains in place and the focus shifts to the extras, all of whom have Down syndrome. This is a stylistic device that prefigured Vallée’s approach of shifting the point of view to individuals who are generally relegated to the background of society.</p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">‘Café de Flore’, starring Vanessa Paradis, created a space for people who are often in the background of society.</span></figcaption>
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<p>The album <em>The Dark Side of the Moon</em> by the band Pink Floyd is prominent in Vallée’s work and the symbolism is not trivial; Vallée’s work reveals the dark side of human complexity. His films are like a glass prism refracting the colours of light; they act as a magnifying glass that scrutinizes and dissects realities that are as atypical as they are authentic.</p>
<p>The title roles in his works have been held by actors who meet industry beauty standards (Jared Leto, Jake Gyllenhaal, Reese Witherspoon, Vanessa Paradis, etc.), but instead of highlighting these actors’ physiques, Vallée likes to transform and challenge them through their acting and their ability to embody vulnerability and contradiction.</p>
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<span class="caption">Director Jean-Marc Vallée with actor Reese Witherspoon at a press conference for the September 2014 release of ‘Wild’ in Toronto.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">THE CANADIAN PRESS/Hannah Yoon</span></span>
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<p>Vallée’s filmography explores different forms of distress through individuals who go on an initiatory journey, literally, as in <em>Wild</em> (2014) or figuratively, as in <em>C.R.A.Z.Y</em> and <em>Demolition</em> (2015). His protagonists are flawed and in search of meaning. They may have entered into an extramarital relationship like Madeline in <em>Big Little Lies</em>, or struggle with addiction like Ron in <em>Dallas Buyers Club</em> or Camille in <em>Sharp Objects</em>.</p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">Amy Adams plays alcoholic journalist Camille in the series ‘Sharp Objects’.</span></figcaption>
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<p>Vallée was careful to show their humanity from the very first minutes. His films and episodes almost always begin with a breath, a voice or a humming, which immediately provides an opportunity for the audience to experience the subjectivity of his characters. As for the soundtracks, a key element of his filmography, they are almost always intradiegetic, that is, the characters hear it and they are often the ones who play it. The audience is invited to discover the characters in a different way, through their tastes and their musical choices.</p>
<h2>Cinema as an act of communication</h2>
<p>If Vallée’s films are so moving, it is because cinema and television were, for him, an act of communication. Even during scriptwriting, the filmmaker showed he was <a href="https://savoir.media/clip/jean-marc-vallee">conscious of his future readers</a>, saying he was concerned with providing a pleasant reading experience. From the moment Vallée’s works are put into words, they become part of a dialogue between a sender and receivers. This empathetic vision of scriptwriting proves that the strength of Vallée’s cinema lies above all, in establishing contact between individuals.</p>
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<img alt="Jean-Marc Vallée and Jake Gyllenhaal" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/439506/original/file-20220105-13-qfn7jw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/439506/original/file-20220105-13-qfn7jw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/439506/original/file-20220105-13-qfn7jw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/439506/original/file-20220105-13-qfn7jw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/439506/original/file-20220105-13-qfn7jw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/439506/original/file-20220105-13-qfn7jw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/439506/original/file-20220105-13-qfn7jw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Actor Jake Gyllenhaal and director Jean-Marc Vallée during the promotion of the film ‘Demolition’ at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2015.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young</span></span>
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<p>Concern for the audience was also central to his shoots, where Vallée said he made sure to respect the physical distance between camera and actors (and thus between characters and audience) in order to convey the right emotion. Some actors have done multiple projects with Vallée, showing their appreciation of his work. But more importantly, this reassured audiences. Actors Michel Laperrière and Émile Vallée, for example, played similar roles in <em>C.R.A.Z.Y.</em> and <em>Café de Flore</em>, creating a comforting déjà-vu effect for the audience, weaving links between the different stories.</p>
<p>In the editing process, Vallée created an additional layer of meaning through the use of brief flashbacks that gave access to the characters’ thoughts, and through certain choices that gave the films a more ironic tone. For example, in <em>C.R.A.Z.Y.</em>, a passage from the opera <em>L'Elisir d'Amore</em> plays as Raymond turns over the Christmas table. Vallée did not seem to feel the need to lead his audience into emotion. Instead, the dramatic effect is accentuated by the contrast between the savagery shown on the screen and the dignified tone of the soundtrack. Vallée trusted his audience and enjoyed creating puzzles for them, letting them draw their own conclusions.</p>
<h2>The gift of cinema</h2>
<p>Vallée’s filmography offers the audience a complex experience of decentring, while creating a stylistic coherence between the different narratives. During a 2013 interview on the Québec talk show <em>Tout le monde en parle</em>, when asked about his choice of themes, Vallée answered with one word: “humanity.” His films are above all an ode to human complexity.</p>
<p>Reflecting on his career during a master class, he said he considered himself privileged and hoped that his stories would help him “give back a little.” For Vallée, storytelling was truly a gift, meaning not only a great ability, but, above all, something he would leave behind.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/174561/count.gif" alt="La Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Anne-Sophie Gravel is a member of Réalisatrices Équitables. Her doctoral research is funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council.
</span></em></p>If Vallée’s films are so moving, it is because for him, cinema and television are an act of communication. He said he hoped his stories would “give back a little.”Anne-Sophie Gravel, Doctorante en littérature et arts de la scène et de l'écran (concentration cinéma), Université LavalLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1618882021-06-17T20:06:31Z2021-06-17T20:06:31ZAustralia needs construction waste recycling plants — but locals first need to be won over<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/406658/original/file-20210616-23-2jcmc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C7976%2C5313&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/two-caucasian-engineers-standing-recycling-center-244844368">Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Strong community opposition to a proposed waste facility in regional New South Wales <a href="https://www.northerndailyleader.com.au/story/7124661/community-voices-concern-over-proposed-gunnedah-waste-facility/">made</a> <a href="https://www.nvi.com.au/story/7132271/proposed-gunnedah-waste-facility-a-hot-topic-at-council-meeting/">headlines</a> earlier this year. The <a href="https://www.planningportal.nsw.gov.au/major-projects/project/38166">A$3.9 million facility</a> would occupy 2.7 hectares of Gunnedah’s industrial estate. It’s intended to process up to 250,000 tonnes a year of waste materials from Sydney. </p>
<p>Much of this is construction waste that can be used in road building after processing. Construction of the plant will employ 62 people and its operation will create 30 jobs. Yet every one of the <a href="https://www.planningportal.nsw.gov.au/major-projects/project/38166/submissions/12921/3446">86 public submissions</a> to the planning review objected to the project.</p>
<p>Residents raised various concerns, which received widespread local media coverage. They were concerned about water management, air quality, noise, the impact of hazardous waste, traffic and transport, fire safety and soil and water. For instance, a submission by a local businessman and veterinary surgeon <a href="https://www.northerndailyleader.com.au/story/7124661/community-voices-concern-over-proposed-gunnedah-waste-facility/">stated</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>“The proposed facility is too close to town, residences and other businesses […] Gunnedah is growing and this proposed development will be uncomfortably close to town in years to come.”</p>
</blockquote>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/406611/original/file-20210616-2626-1e7f4ix.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Map showing location of the proposed waste recycling facility in Gunnedah" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/406611/original/file-20210616-2626-1e7f4ix.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/406611/original/file-20210616-2626-1e7f4ix.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=427&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/406611/original/file-20210616-2626-1e7f4ix.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=427&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/406611/original/file-20210616-2626-1e7f4ix.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=427&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/406611/original/file-20210616-2626-1e7f4ix.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=537&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/406611/original/file-20210616-2626-1e7f4ix.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=537&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/406611/original/file-20210616-2626-1e7f4ix.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=537&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The location of the proposed waste recycling facility in Gunnedah.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Source: Google Maps (2021)</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The general manager of the applicant <a href="https://www.northerndailyleader.com.au/story/7147110/asbestos-lithium-storage-taken-off-plans-for-project-after-concerns-raised/">said</a> descriptions such as “toxic waste dump” were far from accurate. </p>
<blockquote>
<p>“It’s not a dump […] Its prime focus is to reclaim, reuse and recycle.” </p>
</blockquote>
<p>He added: “[At present] the majority of this stuff goes to landfill. What we’re proposing is very beneficial to the environment, which is taking these resources and putting them back into recirculation. The reality is the population is growing, more waste is going to get generated and the upside is we’re much better processing and claiming out of it than sending it to landfill.”</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/we-create-20m-tons-of-construction-industry-waste-each-year-heres-how-to-stop-it-going-to-landfill-114602">We create 20m tons of construction industry waste each year. Here's how to stop it going to landfill</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Why are these facilities needed?</h2>
<p>According to the latest data in the <a href="https://www.environment.gov.au/protection/waste/national-waste-reports/2020">National Waste Report 2020</a>, Australia generated 27 million tonnes of waste (44% of all waste) from the construction and demolition (C&D) sector in 2018-19. That’s a 61% increase since 2006-07. This waste stream is the largest source of managed waste in Australia and 76% of it is recycled. </p>
<p>However, recycling rates and processing capacities still need to increase massively. The <a href="https://majorprojects.planningportal.nsw.gov.au/prweb/PRRestService/mp/01/getContent?AttachRef=SSD-8530563%2120201211T040030.838%20GMT">environmental impact statement</a> for the Gunnedah project notes Sydney “is already facing pressure” to dispose of its growing construction waste. Most state and national policies – including the <a href="https://www.epa.nsw.gov.au/-/media/epa/corporate-site/resources/wastestrategy/140876-warr-strategy-14-21.pdf">NSW Waste Avoidance and Resource Recovery Strategy 2014-2021</a>, <a href="https://www.epa.nsw.gov.au/your-environment/recycling-and-reuse/warr-strategy/waste-and-resource-recovery-infrastructure">NSW Waste and Resource Recovery Infrastructure Strategy</a> and <a href="https://www.environment.gov.au/protection/waste/publications/national-waste-policy-2018">2018 National Waste Policy</a> – highlight the need to develop infrastructure to effectively manage this waste.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-20th-century-saw-a-23-fold-increase-in-natural-resources-used-for-building-73057">The 20th century saw a 23-fold increase in natural resources used for building</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Why, then, do people oppose these facilities?</h2>
<p>Public opposition to new infrastructure in local neighbourhoods, the Not-in-My-Back-Yard (<a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/07263869000033801">NIMBY</a>) attitude, is a global phenomenon. Australia is no exception. We have seen previous public <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-07-11/queensland-ipswich-residents-angry-waste-management-proposal/12443514">protests against waste facilities</a> being established in local areas.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.goldenlightpublish.com/dosyalar/baski/JCEMI_2019_113.pdf">academic literature</a> reports the root causes of this resistance are stench and other air pollution, and concerns about impacts on property values and health. Factors that influence individuals’ perceptions include education level, past experience of stench and proximity to housing.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Protesters march behind a sign reading 'We demand fair development'." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/406608/original/file-20210616-13-11j62lm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/406608/original/file-20210616-13-11j62lm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/406608/original/file-20210616-13-11j62lm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/406608/original/file-20210616-13-11j62lm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/406608/original/file-20210616-13-11j62lm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/406608/original/file-20210616-13-11j62lm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/406608/original/file-20210616-13-11j62lm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Local communities around the world have protested against local waste management plants that they see as a threat to their health.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/unitedworkers/12119826803/in/photostream/">United Workers/Flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>What are the other challenges of recycling?</h2>
<p>Our research team at RMIT University explore ways to effectively manage construction and demolition waste, with a focus on developing a circular economy. Our <a href="https://sbenrc.com.au/research-programs/1-75/">research</a> shows this goal depends heavily on the development of end markets for recycled products. Operators then have the confidence to invest in recycling construction and demolition waste, knowing it will produce a reasonable return. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-planned-national-waste-policy-wont-deliver-a-truly-circular-economy-103908">The planned national waste policy won't deliver a truly circular economy</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>A consistent supply of recycled material is needed too. We believe more recycling infrastructure needs to be developed all around Australia. Regional areas are the most suitable for this purpose because they have the space and a need for local job creation. </p>
<p>To achieve nationwide waste recycling, however, everyone must play their part. By everyone, we mean suppliers, waste producers, waste operators, governments and the community. </p>
<p>Today we are facing new challenges such as massive urbanisation, shortage of virgin materials, increasing greenhouse gas emissions and bans on the export of waste. These challenges warrant new solutions, which include sharing responsibility for the waste we all generate. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/a-crisis-too-big-to-waste-chinas-recycling-ban-calls-for-a-long-term-rethink-in-australia-95877">A crisis too big to waste: China's recycling ban calls for a long-term rethink in Australia</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1319021014920122376"}"></div></p>
<h2>What can be done to resolve public concerns?</h2>
<p>Government has a key role to play in educating the public about the many benefits of recycling construction and demolition waste. These benefits include environmental protection, more efficient resource use, reduced construction costs, and job creation. </p>
<p>Government must also ensure communities are adequately consulted. A local <a href="https://www.nvi.com.au/story/7132271/proposed-gunnedah-waste-facility-a-hot-topic-at-council-meeting/">news report</a> reflected Gunnedah residents’ concern that the recycling facility’s proponent had not contacted them. They initiated the contact. One local said:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>“I do understand the short-term financial gains a development like this will bring to the community, but also know the financial and environmental burden they will cause.” </p>
</blockquote>
<p>Feedback from residents triggered a series of consultation sessions involving all parties.</p>
<p>A robust framework for consulting the community, engaging stakeholders and providing information should be developed to accompany any such development. Community education programs should be based on research. </p>
<p>For instance, <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s13762-021-03217-1">research</a> indicates that, unlike municipal waste recycling facilities, construction and demolition waste management facilities have negligible to manageable impact on the environment and residents’ health and well-being. This is due to the non-combustible nature of most construction materials, such as masonrt. </p>
<p>Such evidence needs to be communicated effectively to change negative community attitudes towards construction and demolition waste recycling facilities. At RMIT, through our <a href="https://www.cdwasteportal.com.au">National Construction & Demolition Waste Research and Industry Portal</a>, we continue to play our part in increasing public awareness of the benefits. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/with-the-right-tools-we-can-mine-cities-87672">With the right tools, we can mine cities</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/161888/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Salman Shooshtarian receives funding from Australia Sustainable Built Environment National Research Centre </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Tayyab Maqsood is affiliated with SBEnrc and RMIT.</span></em></p>Construction and demolition creates more waste than any other sector, but much of it can be recycled. However, public resistance to setting up new plants stands in the way of a sustainable market.Salman Shooshtarian, Lecturer, School of Property, Construction and Project Management, RMIT UniversityTayyab Maqsood, Associate Dean and Head of of Project Management, RMIT UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1318202020-07-07T12:14:05Z2020-07-07T12:14:05ZShould architecturally significant low-income housing be preserved?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/345894/original/file-20200706-3975-1ugyem5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=8%2C0%2C2986%2C2034&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A 1974 photograph of Buffalo's Shoreline Apartments.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:NEWLY_CONSTRUCTED_APARTMENTS_IN_DOWNTOWN_BUFFALO_NEAR_THE_WATERFRONT_-_NARA_-_552042.jpg">George Burns/National Arcvhives at College Park </a></span></figcaption></figure><p>This past January, in Buffalo, New York, <a href="https://buffalonews.com/2020/01/23/contractors-begin-demolition-of-shoreline-apartments/">the second phase of demolition</a> for a low-income housing complex called Shoreline Apartments commenced. </p>
<p>The property owner <a href="https://archinect.com/news/article/85320829/plan-to-raze-five-paul-rudolph-buildings-in-buffalo">had long wanted to replace the crumbling buildings</a>. Residents also sought <a href="https://www.buffalorising.com/2015/05/niagara-falling-shoreline-apartments-coming-down/">a safer and more welcoming living space</a> that better blended in with the rest of the neighborhood.</p>
<p>It sounds like a win-win for all parties. But Shoreline, designed by famed architect Paul Rudolph, had been considered an exemplar of modern architecture in the Western New York area. For this reason, local preservationists wanted to <a href="https://www.citylab.com/equity/2015/06/the-slow-death-of-a-brutalist-vision-for-buffalo/394574/">landmark the complex</a> – and save it from the wrecking ball.</p>
<p>As historic preservation scholars, <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.5749/preseducrese.11.2019.0056">we were drawn to this controversy</a> because it highlights one of the key tensions of preserving modern architecture: how to balance the needs of occupants with historically significant designs. </p>
<h2>The ups and downs of low-income housing</h2>
<p>Low-income public housing <a href="https://nlihc.org/sites/default/files/Sec1.03_Historical-Overview_2015.pdf">can trace its roots to the Great Depression</a>.</p>
<p>In 1934, the U.S. government launched the Federal Housing Administration to make home ownership more affordable. Three years later, Congress passed the U.S. Housing Act to set up low-income housing in order to solve a <a href="https://www.jchs.harvard.edu/sites/default/files/w12-5_von_hoffman.pdf">severe affordable housing shortage</a>.</p>
<p>After World War II, <a href="https://www.jchs.harvard.edu/sites/default/files/w12-5_von_hoffman.pdf">millions of returning GIs</a> created another housing crisis. <a href="http://dnr.alaska.gov/parks/oha/publications/pubhouseusa.pdf">The Housing Act of 1949</a> followed, allocating funds to help clear slums and replace them with high-rise apartment buildings deemed more sanitary and efficient.</p>
<p>Architect <a href="https://www.wiley.com/en-us/Preservation+of+Modern+Architecture-p-9780471662945">Theodore Prudon</a> has written about how America’s low-income housing boom coincided with the arrival of Modernist architects from Europe. For this reason, many low-income housing complexes were built in this style, known for its economy, <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/26326884?seq=1">simplicity</a> and functionality. Because concrete <a href="https://savingplaces.org/stories/defending-brutalism#.XmfjDyFJGBY">was both cheap and popular with Modernist architects</a>, it was the obvious choice for state and federal housing authorities limited by taxpayer funding.</p>
<p>[<em>Deep knowledge, daily.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters/the-daily-3?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=deepknowledge">Sign up for The Conversation’s newsletter</a>.]</p>
<p>Some of the low-income housing projects built during this era remain in use today and are considered <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2015/09/public-housing-success/406561/">successes</a>. For example, residents of Austin’s <a href="https://www.hacanet.org/location/santa-rita-courts/">Santa Rita Courts</a>, which was built in 1939, continue to appreciate the <a href="https://www.texasobserver.org/santa-rita-courts-and-the-fight-for-affordable-public-housing/">location and convenience</a> of the property.</p>
<p>Chicago’s Rosenwald Court Apartments is another success story. The historically and architecturally significant low-income housing complex was built in 1929 for the city’s African American community. By 1999, the complex sat empty and, despite the fact that it was on the National Register of Historic Places, was slated for demolition. However thanks to a public-private partnership that funded a US$132 million <a href="https://www.rosenwaldchicago.com/">rehabilitation</a> project, the units <a href="https://www.dnainfo.com/chicago/20160930/bronzeville/rosenwald-ribbon-cutting/">were transformed</a> into subsidized and market-rate apartments in 2016. </p>
<p>But these represent outliers; the vast majority of projects built during this period have been either <a href="https://www.austinmonitor.com/stories/2018/01/landmark-commission-pushes-full-preservation-rosewood-courts/">redeveloped</a> or torn down. </p>
<p>One of the most famous failures was the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2015/apr/22/pruitt-igoe-high-rise-urban-america-history-cities">Pruitt Igoe Housing Complex</a> in St. Louis. Designed by famous Japanese architect Minoru Yamasaki, the 33-building high-rise complex was completed in 1956 and <a href="https://www.huduser.gov/portal/pdredge/pdr_edge_featd_article_110314.html">demolished</a> just 20 years later after life in the development – rife with neglectful maintenance, crime and high vacancy – <a href="http://www.pruitt-igoe.com/">became unbearable</a>. Other projects, like <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/06/magazine/the-towers-came-down-and-with-them-the-promise-of-public-housing.html?auth=login-email&login=email">Cabrini Green Housing</a> in Chicago, met a similar fate.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/338689/original/file-20200530-78885-14sbu1g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/338689/original/file-20200530-78885-14sbu1g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=474&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/338689/original/file-20200530-78885-14sbu1g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=474&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/338689/original/file-20200530-78885-14sbu1g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=474&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/338689/original/file-20200530-78885-14sbu1g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=595&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/338689/original/file-20200530-78885-14sbu1g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=595&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/338689/original/file-20200530-78885-14sbu1g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=595&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Pruitt Igoe collapses during planned demolitions.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Office of Policy Development and Research</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Shoreline: Vision meets reality</h2>
<p>When architect Paul Rudolph unveiled his vision for Shoreline Apartments, local newspapers likened the design to rolling Italian hills along Lake Erie’s flat waterfront.</p>
<p>Shoreline was supposed to be a different sort of housing project – one that fostered an economically, culturally and racially integrated community. </p>
<p>Despite the early accolades, the complex, once completed, had significant structural issues that arose as early as 1972: poor insulation, water leaks and infestations. The floor-to-ceiling windows – a design feature initially lauded by the press – ended up needing to be significantly altered to better insulate the apartments.</p>
<p>The interior design vision for the complex also failed to come to fruition. A feature in a 1973 issue of House and Garden showcased the vision of artist <a href="http://archives.nypl.org/mss/6209">William Machado</a>. The total cost of outfitting one apartment at Shoreline with Machado’s design, including furniture, accessories and appliances, was $4,500 – almost half of the annual salary threshold needed to be met by middle-income occupants to qualify for a unit. This alone highlighted the gap between the design vision for the apartments and the economic realities of the tenants.</p>
<p>Compounding the economic and structural issues, Rudolph’s serpentine plan created secluded niches and stepped elevations that are easily scaled, allowing access to the upper floors. The dense landscape of shade and shadows didn’t cause crime, but it did facilitate it.</p>
<p>Residents long spoke of feeling safe only behind locked doors, and of gangs and drug dealers and squatters lurking in common spaces. Finally, in 2013, current owner Norstar Development submitted plans to demolish the more dilapidated buildings and replace them with townhouse-style apartments.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/338691/original/file-20200530-78845-fcw3b8.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/338691/original/file-20200530-78845-fcw3b8.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/338691/original/file-20200530-78845-fcw3b8.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/338691/original/file-20200530-78845-fcw3b8.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/338691/original/file-20200530-78845-fcw3b8.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/338691/original/file-20200530-78845-fcw3b8.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/338691/original/file-20200530-78845-fcw3b8.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">By 2013, the Waterfront Apartments were in rough shape, with several blocks vacant for over a decade.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Kerry Traynor</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Preservationists argued the merits of Paul Rudolph’s Brutalist masterpiece. Using local preservation ordinances, they nominated the complex to be designated as a “Local Landmark,” which would have potentially saved the property from demolition and allowed Buffalo Preservation Board to have oversight over any exterior changes at the complex.</p>
<p>The arguments presented before the Buffalo Preservation Board’s public meeting in July 2014 highlighted Rudolph’s iconic design and vision for creating a “unified village” and the significance of the apartment as one of the few regional examples of the Brutalist style. Meanwhile, a handful of residents also spoke at the public hearing, telling stories about the hardships of living in the units.</p>
<p>This illustrates a pressing issue between proponents of modernist architecture and <a href="https://buffalonews.com/2018/01/29/editorial-shoreline-apartments-too-deteriorated-to-keep/">the actual occupants and users of the spaces</a>. For decades, similar physical issues have plagued the <a href="https://www.citylab.com/design/2016/10/the-weird-and-wonderful-library-that-nearly-ruined-its-architect/497270/">Earl W. Brydges Library</a> in Niagara Falls, New York, and the <a href="https://www.citylab.com/design/2017/08/an-architectural-rescue-gone-wrong/537975/">Government Center</a> in Goshen, New York – both also designed by Rudolph. Like Shoreline, proponents and detractors have debated whether to preserve the structures.</p>
<p>In Buffalo, the Preservation Board ultimately sided with the residents and voted to not landmark Shoreline apartments. The new townhouse-style homes, called <a href="https://www.norstarus.com/nd-usa-projects/niagara-square-apartments/">Niagara Square Apartments</a>, were built after the Phase I demolition, and have been <a href="https://www.buffalorising.com/2017/11/better-look-niagara-square-apartments/">fully occupied</a> since construction finished in 2017. This serves as a sobering alert to the preservation and design community, housing activists and organizations who argued in favor of preserving the historic work of a master over the needs of the user. Cities around the country, such as <a href="https://www.curbed.com/2017/7/25/16020648/affordable-housing-apartment-urban-development">Denver, Cleveland and Minneapolis</a> face similar challenges, and are finding new and creative ways to balance the two sides.</p>
<p>At the heart of such a controversy it’s important to always ask: preservation for whom? </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/339015/original/file-20200601-95024-15uicoj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/339015/original/file-20200601-95024-15uicoj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=316&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/339015/original/file-20200601-95024-15uicoj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=316&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/339015/original/file-20200601-95024-15uicoj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=316&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/339015/original/file-20200601-95024-15uicoj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/339015/original/file-20200601-95024-15uicoj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/339015/original/file-20200601-95024-15uicoj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Phase I of the new Niagara Square Apartments was completed in 2017.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Ashima Krishna</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/131820/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kerry Traynor is principal investigator at kta preservation specialists and consulted with the owner of Shoreline documenting the existing conditions prior to demolition. Kta preservation specialists was compensated for this consultation work.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ashima Krishna does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Mismanaged and in disrepair, many low-income housing complexes are nonetheless seen as important avatars of modern architecture. But are calls for their preservation forgetting those who matter most?Ashima Krishna, Assistant Professor, University at BuffaloKerry Traynor, Clinical Associate Professor of Urban and Regional Planning, University at BuffaloLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1146022019-07-11T20:16:37Z2019-07-11T20:16:37ZWe create 20m tons of construction industry waste each year. Here’s how to stop it going to landfill<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/271928/original/file-20190501-39929-xgl3o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Building construction and demolition create enormous amounts of waste and much of it goes into landfill.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/pile-construction-waste-404541370?src=748gTFZsGQAqCdrYsHeYhQ-1-67">Sytilin Pavel/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The Australian construction industry has <a href="https://www.rba.gov.au/chart-pack/regions-industry.html">grown significantly in the past two decades</a>. Population growth has led to the need for extensive property development, better public transport and improved infrastructure. This means there has been a substantial increase in waste produced by construction and demolition. </p>
<p>In 2017, the industry generated 20.4 million tons (or megatonnes, MT) of waste from construction and demolition, such as for road and rail maintenance and land excavation. Typically, the waste from these activities includes bricks, concrete, metal, timber, plasterboard, asphalt, rock and soil.</p>
<p>Between 2016 and 2017, more than <a href="http://www.environment.gov.au/system/files/resources/d523f4e9-d958-466b-9fd1-3b7d6283f006/files/national-waste-policy-2018.pdf">6.7MT of this waste</a> went into landfills across Australia. The rest is either recycled, illegally dumped, reused, reprocessed or stockpiled. </p>
<p>But with high social, economic and environmental costs, sending waste to landfill is the worst strategy to manage this waste.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/with-the-right-tools-we-can-mine-cities-87672">With the right tools, we can mine cities</a>
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</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>What’s more, China introduced its “<a href="https://www.greenindustries.sa.gov.au/chinas-new-policy-on-waste-and-recycling">National Sword Policy</a>” and restricted waste imports, banning certain foreign waste materials and setting stricter limits on contamination. So Australia’s need for solutions to landfill waste has become urgent. </p>
<p>China has long been the main end-market for recycling materials from Australia and other countries. In 2016 alone, China imported <a href="http://www.mraconsulting.com.au/PDFs/MRA_China_National_Sword.pdf">US$18 billion worth of recyclables</a>. </p>
<p>Their new policy has mixed meanings for <a href="https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Senate/Environment_and_Communications/WasteandRecycling/Report">Australia’s waste and resource recovery industry</a>. While it has closed China’s market to some of our waste, it encourages the development of an Australian domestic market for salvaged and recycled waste. </p>
<p>But there are several <a href="https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Senate/Environment_and_Communications/WasteandRecycling/Report">issues</a> standing in the way of effective management of Australia’s construction and demolition waste. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/a-crisis-too-big-to-waste-chinas-recycling-ban-calls-for-a-long-term-rethink-in-australia-95877">A crisis too big to waste: China's recycling ban calls for a long-term rethink in Australia</a>
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</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>The producers should take more responsibility</h2>
<p>In Australia, the main strategy to reduce the waste sent to landfill is the use of levies. But the effectiveness of levies has <a href="https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Senate/Environment_and_Communications/WasteandRecycling/Report">been questioned</a> in recent years by experts who argue for smarter strategies to manage waste from construction and demolition. They say that imposing a landfill levy has not achieved the intended goals, such as a reduction in waste disposal or an increase in waste recovery activities.</p>
<p>One effective strategy Australia should expand is <a href="https://www.oecd.org/env/tools-evaluation/extendedproducerresponsibility.htm">extended producer responsibility</a> (EPR). </p>
<p>The <a href="http://www.oecd.org/officialdocuments/publicdisplaydocumentpdf/?doclanguage=en&cote=env/epoc/ppc(97)21/rev2">idea originated in Germany</a> in 1991 as a result of a landfill shortage. At the time, packaging <a href="https://pubs-acs-org.ezproxy.lib.rmit.edu.au/doi/pdf/10.1021/es003229n">made up 30% by weight and 50% by volume of Germany’s total municipal waste stream</a>. </p>
<p>To slow down the filling of landfills, Germany introduced “the <a href="http://www.oecd.org/officialdocuments/publicdisplaydocumentpdf/?doclanguage=en&cote=env/epoc/ppc(97)21/rev2">German Packaging Ordinance</a>”. This law made manufacturers responsible for their own packaging waste. They either had to take back their packaging from consumers and distributors or pay the national packaging waste management organisation to collect it. </p>
<p>Australia has no specific EPR-driven legal instrument for the construction and demolition waste stream, nor any nationally adopted EPR regulations. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/273984/original/file-20190513-183112-1le5g4r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/273984/original/file-20190513-183112-1le5g4r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/273984/original/file-20190513-183112-1le5g4r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/273984/original/file-20190513-183112-1le5g4r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/273984/original/file-20190513-183112-1le5g4r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/273984/original/file-20190513-183112-1le5g4r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=425&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/273984/original/file-20190513-183112-1le5g4r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=425&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/273984/original/file-20190513-183112-1le5g4r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=425&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Waste piled at a demolition site at Little A'Beckett Street in Melbourne in April 2019.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Salman Shooshtarian</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>But some largely voluntary approaches have had an impact. These include the national <a href="https://www.environment.gov.au/protection/waste-resource-recovery/product-stewardship">Product Stewardship Act 2011</a>, New South Wales’ <a href="https://www.epa.nsw.gov.au/%7E/media/EPA/Corporate%20Site/resources/waste/101012-epr-priority.ashx">Extended Producer Responsibility Priority Statement 2010</a> and Western Australia’s 2008 <a href="https://www.wastenet.net.au/Assets/Documents/Content/Policy/EPR-Policy-Statement-amendment-review-June-2008.pdf">Policy Statement on Extended Producer Responsibility</a>.</p>
<p>These schemes have provided an impetus for industry engagement in national integrated management of some types of waste, such as e-waste, oil, batteries and fluorescent lights. Voluntary industry programs also cover materials such as PVC, gypsum, waffle pod and carpet. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/indonesia-has-sent-australias-recycling-home-its-time-to-clean-up-our-act-120159">Indonesia has sent Australia's recycling home – it's time to clean up our act</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>For instance, since 2002, the Vinyl Council of Australia has voluntarily agreed to apply EPR principles. Armstrong Australia, the world’s largest manufacturer of resilient PVC flooring products, collects the offcuts and end-of-life flooring materials for recycling and processing into a new product. These materials would otherwise have been sent to landfill.</p>
<p>In another example, CSR Gyprock uses a take-back scheme to collect offcuts and demolition materials. After installation, the fixing contractor arranges collection with CSR Gyprock’s recycling contractor who charges the builder a reasonable fee. </p>
<h2>Connecting industries</h2>
<p>But extending producer responsibility in a sustainable way comes with a few challenges. </p>
<p>Everyone in the supply chain should be included: those who produce and supply materials, those involved in construction and demolition, and those who recover, recycle and dispose of waste. </p>
<p>The goal of our work is to connect organisations and industries across the country so waste can be traded instead of sent to landfill. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-20th-century-saw-a-23-fold-increase-in-natural-resources-used-for-building-73057">The 20th century saw a 23-fold increase in natural resources used for building</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>But the lack of an efficient supply chain system can discourage stakeholders from taking part in such schemes. An inefficient supply chain increases the costs associated with labour and admin staff at construction sites, transport, storage, separation of waste and insurance premiums. </p>
<p>All of these are not only seen as a financial burden but also add complexities to an already complicated system. </p>
<p>Australia needs a system with a balanced involvement of producers, consumers and delivery services to extend producer responsibility. </p>
<h2>How can research and development help?</h2>
<p>In our research, we’re seeking to develop a national economic approach to deal with the barriers preventing the effective management of construction and demolition waste in Australia, such as implementing an extended producer responsibility. </p>
<p>And <a href="https://sbenrc.com.au/app/uploads/2019/02/SBEnrc1.65FactSheet.pdf">a project</a> aimed to find ways to integrate supply chain systems in the construction and demolition waste and resource recovery industry is supporting our efforts.</p>
<p>The goal is to ensure well-established connections between all parts in the construction supply chain. A more seamless system will boost markets for these materials, making waste recovery more economically viable. And that in turn will benefit society, economy and the environment. </p>
<hr>
<p><em>Readers with an interest in the management of construction and demolition waste are invited to complete the survey the authors have designed to capture different aspects of C&D waste management. This will help develop a broader understanding of the issues and further research. The survey should take about 15-20 minutes and is accessible <a href="https://rmit.au1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_egrQimLP0ljnFnT">here</a>.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/114602/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Salman Shooshtarian as a research fellow in a research team receives funding from Australian Sustainable Built Environment National Research Centre.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Dr Malik Khalfan is a full member of the Australian Institute of Building (AIB). He is part of a research team funded by Australian Sustainable Built Environment National Research Centre.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Peter Wong receives funding from Australian Sustainable Built Environment National Research Centre.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rebecca Yang receives funding from Sustainable Built Environment National Research Centre. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Tayyab Maqsood receives funding from Australian Sustainable Built Environment National Research Centre. He is a member of Engineers Australia, The Australian Institute of Project Management, and the Project Management Institute. </span></em></p>China has put the onus back on Australia to take responsibility for our waste, and Germany has shown us the way with extended producer responsibility for construction and demolition waste.Salman Shooshtarian, Lecturer, School of Property, Construction and Project Management, RMIT UniversityMalik Khalfan, Associate Professor, Property, Construction and Project Management, RMIT UniversityPeter S.P. Wong, Associate Professor and Associate Dean, School of Property, Construction and Project Management, RMIT UniversityRebecca Yang, Senior Lecturer, Property, Construction and Project Management, RMIT UniversityTayyab Maqsood, Associate Dean and Head of of Project Management, RMIT UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/825822018-11-19T11:36:59Z2018-11-19T11:36:59ZDomicology: A new way to fight blight before buildings are even constructed<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/246033/original/file-20181116-194503-1553ppp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=133%2C39%2C2791%2C1793&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">In recent years, Detroit has demolished thousands of abandoned homes annually.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/Foreclosures-Michigan/a4ebb055899649cb9e996e1991fab176/1/0">AP Photo/Carlos Osorio</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Detroit has been demolishing <a href="https://www.freep.com/story/money/business/michigan/2014/12/14/detroit-blight-duggan/20360959/">about 200 vacant</a> <a href="https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/michigan/2014/12/16/michigan-detroit-blight-funding/20479333/">houses per week</a> since December 2014, with a <a href="https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/michigan/2014/12/16/michigan-detroit-blight-funding/20479333/">goal to take down</a> <a href="https://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/detroit/2016/04/20/feds-expected-give-detroit-demolitions-another-boost/83270176/">6,000 houses in one year</a>. Much of the demolition work is <a href="https://www.freep.com/story/money/business/michigan/2014/12/14/detroit-blight-duggan/20360959/">concentrated in about 20 neighborhoods</a> where the blight removal is projected to have immediate positive effects of improving remaining property values and clearing land for future development.</p>
<p>While Detroit may be an extreme example, economic decline, disinvestment, racial segregation and natural and human-made disasters have left <a href="https://www.curbed.com/2018/6/1/17419126/blight-land-bank-vacant-property">other American communities with unprecedented</a> amounts of structural debris, abandonment and blight, too.</p>
<p>As <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=odXvvl8AAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">scholars</a> <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=1pS6CL4AAAAJ&hl=en&oi=sra">who</a> <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=HIbvNzkAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">focus</a> on understanding the complex circumstances that have led to blight, we also have some ideas about potential solutions that could prevent this cycle the next time around. </p>
<p>We’ve coined the term <a href="https://domicology.msu.edu">domicology</a> to describe our study of the life cycles of the built environment. It examines the continuum from the planning, design and construction stages through to the end of use, abandonment and deconstruction or reuse of structures.</p>
<p>Domicology recognizes the cyclical nature of the built environment. Ultimately we’re imagining a world where no building has to be demolished. Structures will be designed with the idea that once they reach the end of their usefulness, they can be deconstructed with the valuable components repurposed or recycled.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/246034/original/file-20181116-194513-14hjnzq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/246034/original/file-20181116-194513-14hjnzq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/246034/original/file-20181116-194513-14hjnzq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/246034/original/file-20181116-194513-14hjnzq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/246034/original/file-20181116-194513-14hjnzq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/246034/original/file-20181116-194513-14hjnzq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/246034/original/file-20181116-194513-14hjnzq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/246034/original/file-20181116-194513-14hjnzq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">As people abandon homes the effects ripple through the community.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/Detroit-Demolitions-Lead/86113ccfa72b47d689c5bacd78fc93e9/4/0">AP Photo/Carlos Osorio</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Thinking about the end at the beginning</h2>
<p>The U.S. reached a <a href="http://www.jchs.harvard.edu/sites/default/files/son2013.pdf">record high of 7.4 million abandoned homes</a> in 2012. When people leave homes, the local commercial economy falters, resulting in commercial abandonment as well. The social, environmental and economic consequences disproportionately affect already struggling communities. <a href="https://www.citylab.com/equity/2018/07/vacancy-americas-other-housing-crisis/565901/">Abandoned buildings contribute</a> to lower property values and are associated with higher rates of crime and unemployment. Due to the scale of the problem, local governments are often unable to allocate enough resources to remove blighted structures.</p>
<p>All human-made structures have a life cycle, but rarely do people embrace this reality at the time of construction. The development community gives little thought to the end of life of a structure, in large part because the costs of demolition or deconstruction are <a href="https://domicology.msu.edu/Upload/forum1.pdf">passed on to some future public or private entity</a>.</p>
<p>Currently, <a href="https://detroitmi.gov/departments/detroit-building-authority/detroit-demolition-program">publicly financed demolition</a> and landfilling are the most frequent methods used to remove abandoned structures, but these practices <a href="https://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/article/deconstruction-makes-sense-demolition">generate a huge amount of material waste</a>. Upwards of <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/lawrenceyun/2016/12/13/housing-shortage-for-how-long/#1526534f5ee4">300,000 houses are demolished annually</a>, which generates <a href="https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2018-07/documents/2015_smm_msw_factsheet_07242018_fnl_508_002.pdf">169.1 million tons of construction and demolition debris</a> – about 22 percent of the U.S. solid waste stream.</p>
<p>Here’s where a shift to a new domicology mindset can help. Unlike demolition, <a href="https://delta-institute.org/delta/wp-content/uploads/Delta-Decon-Flyer-2015.pdf">deconstruction</a> is a sustainable approach to systematically disassembling buildings, which can result in up to <a href="https://delta-institute.org/delta/wp-content/uploads/Delta-Decon-Flyer-2015.pdf">95 percent material reuse and recycling</a>. This method, however, may increase time and cost, while at the same time potentially creating a vibrant reuse market for salvaged materials.</p>
<p>Domicology’s comprehensive paradigm shift from landfill-dependent demolition waste streams to sustainable construction, deconstruction and material salvage will affect both methods of construction and the materials used. For example, in design and construction of structures, modular components tend to be easier to dismantle than “stick-built” methods. Construction techniques that rely more on connectors like screws instead of glues or nails mean dismantlers can remove materials with less damage, increasing the value of the salvaged material.</p>
<p><a href="https://domicology.msu.edu/upload/Material-Market-Study-web.pdf">On the materials side</a>, using salvaged wood products to create new structural wood products can reduce reliance on virgin timber, which has recently experienced <a href="http://eyeonhousing.org/2018/06/number-of-builders-reporting-framing-lumber-shortages-surges/">shortages and price fluctuations</a>. Salvaged concrete can be used as <a href="https://www.cement.org/learn/concrete-technology/concrete-design-production/recycled-aggregates">aggregate in new construction</a>. In some cases, even roof shingles can be <a href="http://asphaltmagazine.com/using-recycled-asphalt-shingles-in-asphalt-pavements/">melted for asphalt road surfacing</a>. In the Midwest, where there are substantial numbers of abandoned properties, an <a href="https://www.detroitresearch.org/pictures-of-a-city-scrappers/">underground “scrapper” economy has emerged</a> that salvages copper and other valuable metals from structures.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/245646/original/file-20181114-194506-cuhlvh.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/245646/original/file-20181114-194506-cuhlvh.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/245646/original/file-20181114-194506-cuhlvh.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=393&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/245646/original/file-20181114-194506-cuhlvh.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=393&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/245646/original/file-20181114-194506-cuhlvh.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=393&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/245646/original/file-20181114-194506-cuhlvh.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=494&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/245646/original/file-20181114-194506-cuhlvh.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=494&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/245646/original/file-20181114-194506-cuhlvh.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=494&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">To make deconstruction a viable alternative to demolition on a large scale, some things need to change.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.usafa.af.mil/USAFANews/Article/706952/alternative-spring-break-cadets-deconstruct-houston-home/">U.S. Air Force/John Van Winkle</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>What needs to change?</h2>
<p>All of this requires forethought in recognizing that structures have an end of life. There is value in planning, designing and building in such a way that when a structure reaches the end of its usefulness, people can maximize the salvage of the materials removed from these structures. Creating a value in the end of life of a structure also decreases the likelihood of walking away from these valuable resources – reducing private sector abandonment in a community experiencing distress. </p>
<p><a href="https://domicology.msu.edu/upload/GuidetoLocalOrdinances_May2018.pdf">Governments can help by</a> putting in place policies, incentives and regulations to prevent abandonment and facilitate removal. Domicology will depend on figuring out the best processes and technologies for safe removal. Deconstructors will need to hire differently skilled laborers than for a standard demolition. And for domicology to work there will need to be a way to take the removed material to a place where it can be given a second life of some kind.</p>
<p>As with any paradigm shift, the most challenging issue is to change current mindsets. People need to leave behind a “build it, use it, demolish it” perspective and replace it with a “plan it, design it, build it, use it, deconstruct it and reuse the materials” view. Builders must imagine at the beginning of a structure’s life what will happen at the end of it.</p>
<h2>Economics do add up</h2>
<p>Our domicology team recently <a href="https://domicology.msu.edu/upload/MuskegonDeconstructionHubFinalReport.pdf">tested the economic feasibility</a> of using deconstruction practices rather than demolition as a way to reduce blight. We also wanted to explore how feasible it would be to establish a deconstruction-based repurposing economy.</p>
<p>Our findings suggest that the central collection, reuse and repurposing of material from legacy cities in the Great Lakes region is feasible with the help of specific policies, practices and targeted economic development strategies.</p>
<p>A crucial support would be a strong supply chain for salvaged materials. In Europe, California and the East Coast of the U.S., deconstruction firms can more easily acquire the material from blighted structures, access a skilled deconstruction labor force and use low-cost modes of transportation to move salvaged materials to processing facilities. All these advantages make deconstruction <a href="https://domicology.msu.edu/upload/Berghorn-DollarsandSenseofDomicology.pdf">cost-competitive in those regions</a> against demolition and disposal.</p>
<p>As a result of the work done so far, we and our colleagues have begun to incorporate the concepts and practices of domicology in <a href="https://schedule.msu.edu/CourseDesc.aspx?SubjectCode=PDC&CourseNumber=403&Term=1186">targeted courses for students</a>. By introducing this emerging science in the classroom, students here at Michigan State University are helping to pioneer a new 21st-century conception of a sustainable built environment.</p>
<p>As these ideas take hold and spread through planning, design, financing and construction industries, the goal is to prevent another blight epidemic like the one we see today in Detroit.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/82582/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rex LaMore receives funding from U. S. Department of Commerce, Economic Development Administration. Rex LaMore is the recent Past President of the Michigan Association of Planning. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>George H. Berghorn receives funding from the National Science Foundation, the US Department of Energy, the US Fish and Wildlife Service, the US Forest Service, the National Housing Endowment, and the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>M.G. Matt Syal receives funding from the National Association of Home builders, U.S. PA, U.S. HUD, U.S. DOC, United Nations Industrial Development Organization, Govt. of Qatar, Takenaka Construction Co, Japan, and National Electrical Contractors Association. He is affiliated with Am Society of Civil Engineers, National Association of Home Builders, Associated Schools of Construction, </span></em></p>By the time a building is abandoned and falls into disrepair, its community is already suffering. Michigan scholars suggest it’s time to plan for structures’ end of life before they even go up.Rex LaMore, Director of the Center for Community & Economic Development and Adjunct Faculty in Urban and Regional Planning Program, Michigan State UniversityGeorge H. Berghorn, Assistant Professor of Construction Management, Michigan State UniversityM.G. Matt Syal, Professor of Construction Management, Michigan State UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/823422017-09-01T01:05:49Z2017-09-01T01:05:49ZRemembering America’s lost buildings<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/183860/original/file-20170829-32486-oyd6pz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A photograph of Penn Station's interior from the 1930s.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/22/Penn_Station%2C_Interior%2C_Manhattan_%28NYPL_b13668355-482603%29.jpg">Bernice Abbott</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>In June 2017, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo <a href="http://www.archdaily.com/873993/new-renderings-of-penn-stations-1-dollars-6-cents-billion-renovation-released-as-project-gets-greenlight">announced a US$1.6 billion project</a> to transform New York City’s much-maligned Penn Station in hopes of restoring it to its former glory.</em></p>
<p><em>The original structure – an iconic example of the <a href="https://www.crt.state.la.us/Assets/OCD/hp/nationalregister/historic_contexts/beauxartsREVISED.pdf">Beaux-Arts architectural style</a> – was destroyed in 1963 and replaced by a bleak, underground network of tunnels and walkways.</em></p>
<p><em>“One entered the city like a god; one scuttles in now like a rat,” architectural historian Vincent Scully Jr. <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/12/arts/design/a-proposal-for-penn-station-and-madison-square-garden.html">lamented</a>.</em></p>
<p><em>If there’s a silver lining, the 1963 demolition <a href="https://savingplaces.org/stories/loss-law-that-gave-life-to-modern-preservation-movement#.WYDk7YWcHn8">did spur</a> the formation of <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/1990/04/15/arts/architecture-view-a-commission-that-has-itself-become-a-landmark.html">the New York City Landmarks Commission</a> in 1965 and the passage of the <a href="http://www.achp.gov/nhpa.pdf">National Historic Preservation Act</a>.</em></p>
<p><em>Unfortunately, all cannot be salvaged. Preservation efforts must be galvanized; they require mobilization, time and resources. We reached out to five architecture professors and posed the following question: What’s one American structure you wish had been saved?</em></p>
<p><em>While their responses vary – from an unassuming home nestled in the suburbs of Boston to a monument of 19th-century wealth and glamour – none of the structures could resist the tides of decay, development and discrimination.</em></p>
<hr>
<h2>A mecca for black Chicago</h2>
<p><strong>Daniel Bluestone, Boston University</strong></p>
<p>In 1943, when the storied, half-century-old Mecca apartment building in Chicago’s South Side was about to be demolished, something extraordinary happened: The Illinois legislature passed a bill to preserve it.</p>
<p>Designed in 1891 by Edbrooke and Burnham, <a href="http://www.jstor.org/stable/991458?origin=JSTOR-pdf&seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents">the 96-unit Mecca immediately captured the public’s imagination</a>. It was Chicago’s first residential building with a landscaped courtyard open to the street, a design that fused two seemingly incompatible ideals: to build densely while preserving and cultivating the natural landscape. </p>
<p>In the late 19th century, <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1447986/">Chicago’s tenement reformers</a> had demanded more light and fresh air for the city’s apartments; they wanted small parks and playgrounds to be able to dot the city’s swelling neighborhoods. The Mecca’s innovative design was a paean to these progressive concerns.</p>
<p>The complex had two atria with <a href="http://images.google.com/hosted/life/f906345d2ce61419.html">skylights</a> that flooded the interior with light. Residents accessed their apartments via open galleries that encircled the atria, with railings that featured foliated ironwork. This form – the courtyard within an apartment complex – inspired a hugely popular Chicago vernacular tradition.</p>
<p>In the early 20th century, the Mecca was enveloped by the South Side’s <a href="https://www.chipublib.org/housing/">expanding Black Belt</a>. Between 1912 and 1913, the complex’s occupancy changed from overwhelmingly white to completely African-American. The massing of black residents in the iconic building inspired residents and artists to view the building as an symbol of black Chicago. South Side blues bars improvised the “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0mEkZPJ_XMs">Mecca Flat Blues</a>,” which were tales of love and heartbreak, while poet Gwendolyn Brooks memorialized the building with her poem “<a href="https://books.google.com/books/about/In_the_Mecca.html?id=3E1aAAAAMAAJ">In the Mecca</a>.” </p>
<p>By the 1930s, officials at the adjacent Armour Institute (later Illinois Institute of Technology) <a href="http://www.jstor.org/stable/991458?origin=JSTOR-pdf&seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents">grew concerned about their ability to attract students and faculty</a> to a campus located in the heart of the black community. In 1938 they bought the Mecca, planning to swiftly demolish it in order to create a buffer between town and gown. </p>
<p>Illinois Governor Dwight Green vetoed the legislation that would have preserved the Mecca, and in 1952 – <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=owgcDRTKLxUC&pg=PA236&lpg=PA236&dq=dwight+green+mecca&source=bl&ots=O4VAjlyAd7&sig=DoZRxZNyPx7irPmqajvyxenZmqU&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwir6_vCuv_VAhXC4yYKHQe6BPsQ6AEIQTAI#v=onepage&q=dwight%20green%20mecca&f=false">after years of legal wrangling and community protest</a> – the courts allowed the demolition of an architectural and cultural icon to proceed. </p>
<p>The only consolation is that it was replaced by Mies van der Rohe’s famed <a href="http://arch.iit.edu/img/ce7d6a8d9a30a9b1/5804-l.jpg">Crown Hall</a>, now home to IIT’s architecture school. </p>
<hr>
<h2>A Fifth Avenue palace</h2>
<p><strong>Carol A. Willis, Columbia University; Founding Director, The Skyscraper Museum</strong></p>
<p>Many New Yorkers are familiar with the iconic Waldorf Astoria, which sits on Park Avenue. But they might be surprised to learn that this is the second iteration of the luxury hotel. The original was located along Manhattan’s fashionable Fifth Avenue, and the structure took up the entire block between 33rd and 34th streets. </p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/184312/original/file-20170901-22416-v1mqt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/184312/original/file-20170901-22416-v1mqt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/184312/original/file-20170901-22416-v1mqt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=766&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/184312/original/file-20170901-22416-v1mqt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=766&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/184312/original/file-20170901-22416-v1mqt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=766&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/184312/original/file-20170901-22416-v1mqt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=963&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/184312/original/file-20170901-22416-v1mqt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=963&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/184312/original/file-20170901-22416-v1mqt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=963&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The original Waldorf-Astoria.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.loc.gov/resource/det.4a08045/">Library of Congress</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>But in late November 1929 – after the stock market had crashed and the slow slide into the Great Depression began – workers began demolishing it. </p>
<p>Designed by the noted architect <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2000/05/07/realestate/streetscapes-henry-janeway-hardenbergh-architect-who-left-indelible-imprint.html">Henry Hardenbergh</a>, the imposing building had been built in two parts, campaigns that reflected the progress of <a href="http://skyscraper.org/tenandtaller/grid/">modern construction technology</a> and a “bigger and better” mantra of American architecture. </p>
<p>The first building, the Waldorf, was an 11-story structure that opened in 1893. It was built on the site of the mansion where Mrs. Caroline Astor had entertained New York’s “<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ward_McAllister#.22The_Four_Hundred.22">Four Hundred</a>,” an exclusive group of New York’s social elite. In addition to 530 rooms, the Waldorf offered stately apartments on the second floor and a majestic ballroom that could be closed off for lavish private events. </p>
<p>In 1897, the deluxe Astoria section of the hotel was completed. Facing 34th Street, its 16 stories employed a steel skeleton structure – <a href="http://www.architectmagazine.com/technology/products/throwback-thursday-looking-back-at-the-rise-of-metal-in-construction_o">at the time, a cutting-edge technique</a> – that allowed for taller buildings.</p>
<p>With 1,300 rooms, it was the largest hotel in the city, and like many high-class “palace hotels” of the period, the Waldorf Astoria housed permanent and transient patrons; as The New York Times <a href="http://skyscraper.org/tenandtaller/nw.php">noted</a> in 1890, they were designed “to provide a series of magnificent homes for wealthy New Yorkers as an economical alternative to maintaining private mansions.”</p>
<p>By 1929, however, the owners of the Waldorf Astoria decided to decamp to Park Avenue, where they erected an equally lavish modern, Art Deco monument. </p>
<p>The demolition of the old hotel, completed by the winter of 1930, made way for the construction of the ultimate expression of the city’s architectural ambitions: the Empire State Building.</p>
<hr>
<h2>Traditional New England goes modern</h2>
<p><strong>Kevin D. Murphy, Vanderbilt University</strong></p>
<p>Preservationists are still waiting for something positive to come from the demolition of the house that architect <a href="http://publishing.cdlib.org/ucpressebooks/view?docId=kt5b69q3pk&chunk.id=ch11&toc.id=ch11&brand=ucpress">Eleanor Raymond</a> designed for her sister Rachel. Today, <a href="https://www.historicnewengland.org/explore/collections-access/capobject/?gusn=196000">photographs</a> are all that remain of the pioneering, modernist Rachel Raymond House, which was built in Belmont, Massachusetts, a suburb of Boston.</p>
<p>Raymond was a graduate of Wellesley College <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=OpY0KmICqKYC&lpg=PA25&dq=cambridge%20school%20of%20domestic%20architecture&pg=PA25#v=onepage&q&f=false">and received her professional training</a> at the Cambridge School of Architecture, an all-women’s design school founded in the early 20th century.</p>
<p>The Rachel Raymond House is important example of how American architects incorporated aspects of European modernism into their own work. Inspired by European luminaries Le Corbusier and Mies van der Rohe, Raymond’s home featured abstract, geometric blocks. She employed flat roofs, metal railings and steel sash windows – modernist elements that were virtually unheard of in early 1930s American homes.</p>
<p>Yet the house is no more.</p>
<p>The Belmont Hill School, a private school for boys, purchased the home and – despite protests from preservationists – demolished it in November 2006. At the time, architecture critic Robert Campbell <a href="https://secure.pqarchiver.com/boston-sub/doc/405038375.html?FMT=FT&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Nov+4%2C+2006&author=Campbell%2C+Robert&pub=Boston+Globe&edition=&startpage=D.4&desc=Historic+house+loses+bulldozer+battle">wrote</a> that it was “considered by many to be the earliest modern dwelling in New England.” </p>
<p>The Rachel Raymond House actually predated another iconic modernist house: the home of émigré architect <a href="http://www.archdaily.com/375067/happy-birthday-to-bauhaus-founder-and-acclaimed-modernist-walter-gropius">Walter Gropius</a>, located in nearby Lincoln, Massachusetts. While the Rachel Raymond House was eventually razed, the Gropius House <a href="https://www.historicnewengland.org/property/gropius-house/">has been preserved as a house museum</a>. </p>
<p>So why did these two important houses received such vastly different treatment?</p>
<p>The obvious answer is that the work of women architects has been consistently undervalued. In her book “<a href="http://press.princeton.edu/titles/10665.html">Where Are the Woman Architects?</a>,” architectural historian Despina Stratigakos points out that many female architects seem to possess fewer opportunities for advancement than their male counterparts. One source of the problem, according to Stratigakos, is a dearth of prominent female role models in the field. </p>
<p>The Rachel Raymond House could have been a living icon and source of inspiration. Instead, it fell to the wrecking ball.</p>
<hr>
<h2>Paving paradise</h2>
<p><strong>Kerry Traynor, University at Buffalo</strong> </p>
<p>It might seem odd to lament the loss of a roadway; but Humboldt Parkway wasn’t just a road, it was an urban oasis of green parkland – a crucial component of a much larger park and parkway system.</p>
<p>In 1868, landscape architect <a href="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2011/09/04/travel/04FOOTSTEPS2/04FOOTSTEPS2-popup.jpg">Frederick Law Olmsted</a> arrived in Buffalo, New York to design a park for the city. </p>
<p>Instead, he created a <a href="https://www.bfloparks.org/">Park and Parkway System</a> that consisted of six parks, seven parkways and eight landscaped circles. The brilliance of the plan, however, was in the parkways: over 200 feet wide, lined with elm trees and their canopies, they created a ribbon of green that wove its way through the city, connecting its parks and neighborhoods. <a href="http://www.buffaloah.com/h/ferry/jpegs/38.jpg">Humboldt Parkway</a> connected Delaware Park – Olmsted’s largest – with Humboldt Park.</p>
<p>The result: a city within a park, not just parks within a city.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/184080/original/file-20170830-24257-1hfl1t2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/184080/original/file-20170830-24257-1hfl1t2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/184080/original/file-20170830-24257-1hfl1t2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=335&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/184080/original/file-20170830-24257-1hfl1t2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=335&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/184080/original/file-20170830-24257-1hfl1t2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=335&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/184080/original/file-20170830-24257-1hfl1t2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=421&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/184080/original/file-20170830-24257-1hfl1t2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=421&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/184080/original/file-20170830-24257-1hfl1t2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=421&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A 1953 photograph of Humboldt Parkway.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.buffalorising.com/2014/12/restore-our-community-coalition-launches-i-remember-campaign/">Buffalo & Erie County Historical Society</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>But with <a href="http://blog.buffalostories.com/tag/kensington-expressway/">calls for urban renewal</a> in the 1950s and a growing dependence on the automobile, the city no longer saw <a href="https://www.wnyheritage.org/content/old_photo_album_humboldt_parkway/promo-full.jpg">the pastoral quality of Humboldt Parkway</a> as an asset. </p>
<p>To city and state planners, Humboldt Parkway was the ideal location for an expressway – a highway that could carry automobiles to and from the suburbs and the downtown core, while relieving congestion on neighborhood streets. </p>
<p>In order to clear the way for the new highway – dubbed the Kensington Expressway – the state <a href="http://www.buffaloah.com/h/ferry/jpegs/41.jpg">cut down trees</a>, tore up the parkway and demolished homes. The new highway displaced families, divided neighborhoods by race and income and caused property values to plummet. As <a href="http://bit.ly/2u9gidC">neighborhoods fell apart</a>, businesses shuttered their doors. </p>
<p>Olmsted’s parkway had, quite literally, <a href="https://urbansimplicty.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/humboldt_best1927-19952.jpg">been paved over</a>. As Joni Mitchell sings in her hit song “<a href="http://jonimitchell.com/music/song.cfm?id=13">Big Yellow Taxi</a>,” “They paved paradise / And put up a parking lot.”</p>
<hr>
<h2>From the rubble, a preservation movement is born</h2>
<p><strong>Sally Levine, Case Western Reserve University</strong></p>
<p>When I moved to Chicago in 1982, <a href="https://architecturefarm.wordpress.com/2010/10/07/old-chicago-skyscraper-of-the-week-stock-exchange/">the Chicago Stock Exchange Building</a> had long disappeared, but people still spoke of it with a hushed reverence. </p>
<p>Not only was it considered one of the finest accomplishments of architects <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Louis-Sullivan">Louis Sullivan</a> and <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Dankmar-Adler">Dankmar Adler</a>, its demise also indirectly led to the tragic death of architectural photographer and preservation activist <a href="http://interactive.wttw.com/a/chicago-stories-richard-nickel-story">Richard Nickel</a>, who lost his life snapping photographs of the structure during its demolition.</p>
<p>Built in 1893, the 13-story structure housed the stock exchange for just 14 years. Subsequently the building had a variety of tenants, but leases became fewer and farther between, until the City Council <a href="http://archives.chicagotribune.com/1971/10/20/page/4/article/final-attempt-to-save-stock-exchange-fails">approved its demolition in 1972</a>. </p>
<p>But in its heyday, it was magnificent. </p>
<p>Reflecting Sullivan’s <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Form_follows_function">famous phrase</a> “form ever follows function,” the facade demarcated the building’s three parts – the base (the stock exchange), the middle levels (offices) and top (the building’s “crown”). The base contained an exquisite two-story-high trading room. The nine stories of offices were notable for their columns of bay windows and Chicago windows (composed of a large fixed window flanked by operable ones), and the building was adorned with a row of recessed windows and a distinctive cornice. </p>
<p>But perhaps the most distinctive aspect of the building was the large arched entry, which represented a major development in Sullivan’s skill. Sullivan also adorned the stock exchange room with breathtaking low-relief ornaments and brilliantly painted stenciled patterns.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/184247/original/file-20170831-26448-fkwxm1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/184247/original/file-20170831-26448-fkwxm1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/184247/original/file-20170831-26448-fkwxm1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=386&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/184247/original/file-20170831-26448-fkwxm1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=386&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/184247/original/file-20170831-26448-fkwxm1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=386&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/184247/original/file-20170831-26448-fkwxm1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=485&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/184247/original/file-20170831-26448-fkwxm1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=485&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/184247/original/file-20170831-26448-fkwxm1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=485&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The preserved trading floor of the Chicago Stock Exchange.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Chicago_Stock_Exchange_(7405590890).jpg">Juan Carlos Martin</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Many consider its demolition the impetus for <a href="http://www.encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org/pages/586.html">Chicago’s preservation movement</a>. Another important Chicago architectural icon, <a href="http://kubuildingtech.org/sarcweb/Assemblages00/CaseFinals/Mann_Reliance/Reliance%20View.jpg">the Reliance Building</a>, ended up being saved after vigorous efforts by activists. Through the efforts of Nickel and other preservationists, the arched entry and the interior of the trading room were saved – both are now owned by the Art Institute of Chicago. The arch sits at the corner of Monroe Street and Columbus Drive next to the museum, and the trading room has been reconstructed within the museum itself. </p>
<p>While not as satisfying as seeing the actual building, these remnants testify to the beauty of the Chicago Stock Exchange Building – and the importance of preservation efforts.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/184246/original/file-20170831-2020-1e1j0a0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/184246/original/file-20170831-2020-1e1j0a0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/184246/original/file-20170831-2020-1e1j0a0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=431&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/184246/original/file-20170831-2020-1e1j0a0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=431&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/184246/original/file-20170831-2020-1e1j0a0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=431&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/184246/original/file-20170831-2020-1e1j0a0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=541&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/184246/original/file-20170831-2020-1e1j0a0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=541&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/184246/original/file-20170831-2020-1e1j0a0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=541&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The preserved arch of the old Chicago Stock Exchange.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/old-chicago-stock-exchange-entrance-bit-89177836?src=9bPzUG_q4bQg9TqH1zYQlQ-1-0">Thomas Barrat</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/82342/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>We asked five architecture experts to name one building or structure they wish had been preserved, but couldn’t resist the tides of decay, development and discrimination.Kevin D. Murphy, Andrew W. Mellon Chair in the Humanities and Professor and Chair of History of Art, Vanderbilt UniversityCarol Willis, Founding Director of The Skyscraper Museum, Adjunct Associate Professor of Architecture, Columbia UniversityDaniel Bluestone, Director, Preservation Studies Program; Professor, History of Art & Architecture; Professor, American and New England Studies, Boston UniversityKerry Traynor, Clinical Associate Professor of Urban and Regional Planning, University at BuffaloSally Levine, Lecturer of Architecture, Case Western Reserve UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/676202016-10-28T01:01:15Z2016-10-28T01:01:15ZCould razing Hitler’s first home backfire?<p>The Austrian government <a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/10/17/hitlers-birthplace-may-be-torn-down-to-stop-it-becoming-neo-nazi/">has announced</a> that it will demolish or completely remake the house where Hitler was born 127 years ago in the Austrian town Braunau am Inn. The news has brought a new round of unwanted media attention to the small locale on the Inn River near the German border. </p>
<p>The 17th-century building, part of the town’s historic fabric, has been empty since 2011. When the Hitler family lived there, the building contained apartments as well as a tavern on the ground floor. Most recently, it housed a center for people with disabilities. For decades, it has attracted Nazi sympathizers and curious tourists – an uncomfortable reminder of a time when locals proudly proclaimed their connection to the dictator.</p>
<p>The government, unable to reach an agreement with the owner, who refuses to sell, has already begun expropriation proceedings to legally seize the property. Interior Minister Wolfgang Sobotka announced that the house would be demolished down to the foundations or otherwise rendered unrecognizable through an architectural makeover. The aim, Sobotka says, is to stop neo-Nazi pilgrimages.</p>
<p>But sometimes demolition can do more harm than good. Before determining the fate of the building in Braunau am Inn, the minister should consider how neighboring Germany has handled its own troubled history with the homes Hitler lived in before and after his rise to power – a topic I explore in <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Hitler-at-Home-Despina-Stratigakos/dp/030018381X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1478010417&sr=8-1&keywords=Hitler+at+Home">my book</a> “Hitler at Home.” </p>
<h2>To remember or forget?</h2>
<p>Until Hitler began consolidating power in the late 1920s, he seemed to care little about where he lived. After World War I, for example, he subletted a small room from a couple in Munich and sparsely decorated it with just a few pieces of furniture.</p>
<p>In 1928, however, he rented a chalet on the Obersalzberg, an Alpine resort near the Austrian border. This would become a Nazi political hub: Hermann Göring, Martin Bormann and Albert Speer had homes nearby. The next year, Hitler retained a luxury apartment in Munich. Even though he moved into the Old Chancellery in Berlin after he became chancellor, Hitler maintained the other two. All three were thoroughly renovated in the mid-1930s <a href="https://theconversation.com/hitler-at-home-how-the-nazi-pr-machine-remade-the-fuhrers-domestic-image-and-duped-the-world-47077">to facilitate the creation of a new, sophisticated persona for the Führer</a>.</p>
<p>After Hitler committed suicide in 1945 and Germany surrendered, legacies of Hitler and Nazi Germany – the Führer’s homes included – remained. In the immediate postwar years, there was some confrontation with that past. But decades of silence and avoidance followed. Many wanted to remove National Socialism’s traces from urban landscapes, which meant destroying the buildings of the Third Reich or repurposing them beyond recognition. Their power, it was argued, would be neutralized. But this would also make it easier to pretend that they had never been there at all.</p>
<p>The Old Chancellery, damaged by bombs in 1944, became part of the Soviet sector of allied-occupied Berlin and was demolished. East Germany didn’t acknowledge the history of the site, but after reunification in 1990, the City of Berlin posted a historical marker. Hitler’s Munich apartment building, meanwhile, emerged unscathed from the war. But his mountain retreat on the Obersalzberg, the Berghof, was damaged by British and American air forces.</p>
<p>In the intervening decades, Hitler’s homes have had a long and troublesome afterlife. Various strategies have been tried, some more successful than others.</p>
<p>Today, the dictator’s Munich apartment, where he once hosted Neville Chamberlain and Benito Mussolini, occupies the third floor of a police station. The public can still visit the building. But they must walk past security cameras, request permission to enter through a locked street door and, after climbing a flight of stairs, enter a police reception area, a room that once housed Hitler’s bodyguards. </p>
<p>This is the only space “open” to the public, and those not on police business are discouraged from lingering. Admittedly, the strategy works to keep away neo-Nazis and curious tourists. But it’s also turned the building into a virtual fortress.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/143331/original/image-20161026-11236-hdl5ve.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/143331/original/image-20161026-11236-hdl5ve.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=447&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/143331/original/image-20161026-11236-hdl5ve.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=447&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/143331/original/image-20161026-11236-hdl5ve.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=447&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/143331/original/image-20161026-11236-hdl5ve.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=562&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/143331/original/image-20161026-11236-hdl5ve.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=562&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/143331/original/image-20161026-11236-hdl5ve.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=562&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Hitler’s Munich residence is now a police station.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d3/Prinzregentenplatz_16_Muenchen-1.jpg">Wikimedia Commons</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Blowing up the Berghof</h2>
<p>As for the Berghof, in the early 1950s, there were reports that its ruins had become a meeting place for Nazis, old and new. </p>
<p>In response, state authorities outlined a plan to remove the remains and reforest the grounds. The decision was unpopular among many locals, including merchants who had profited from postwar tourism to the mountain. In the months leading up to the demolition, heated debates in the local papers spilled out into beer hall brawls. This only reinforced the authorities’ resolve, and on April 30, 1952 – the seventh anniversary of Hitler’s suicide – the Berghof was dynamited, an event covered by the international press, <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=BFYEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA41&dq=berghof&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiKlNmGsvvPAhUFMSYKHd3_AQQQ6AEIHjAA#v=onepage&q=berghof&f=false">including Life magazine</a>. </p>
<p>Afterwards, the authorities, insisting that there was nothing to see, did not intervene in the site beyond posting “Do Not Trespass” signs. But in doing so, they created a void into which any kind of meaning could be projected.</p>
<p>Local merchants didn’t have to worry about their bottom line; the stream of visitors actually increased after the house was demolished. By the mid-1960s, the wooded grounds where it had stood had become one of the the largest unadvertised tourist attractions in Germany. Busloads of tourists arrived to mull around the house’s foundations. Neo-Nazis also made their presence felt, carving swastikas on trees and leaving behind altars to Hitler. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/143322/original/image-20161026-11268-192mio1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/143322/original/image-20161026-11268-192mio1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=387&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/143322/original/image-20161026-11268-192mio1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=387&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/143322/original/image-20161026-11268-192mio1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=387&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/143322/original/image-20161026-11268-192mio1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=486&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/143322/original/image-20161026-11268-192mio1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=486&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/143322/original/image-20161026-11268-192mio1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=486&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">An ‘H’ carved into a tree on the grounds of the Berghof, Hitler’s former retreat on the Obersalzberg.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In 1999, the government opened the Obersalzburg Documentation Center <a href="http://www.obersalzberg.de/obersalzberg-home.html?&L=1">Dokumentation Obersalzberg</a> to use education to combat the ignorance and hatred being expressed in the woods. A 10-minute walk from the Berghof grounds, the center offers extensive displays on the mountain region’s relationship and history with National Socialism. The enormously popular destination <a href="http://www.obersalzberg.de/176.html?&no_cache=1&tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=933&tx_ttnews%5BbackPid%5D=57">has drawn 2.5 million visitors to date</a>. Since its opening, traces of neo-Nazi activity in the vicinity have notably dropped off.</p>
<h2>A dangerous void?</h2>
<p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/20/opinion/razing-hitlers-house.html?_r=0">In an op-ed</a> published on Oct. 20, The New York Times editorial board argued for demolition, saying that the historical significance of the house at Braunau am Inn is minimal: Hitler’s family lived there only a short time, Hitler himself showed no interest in the building and no important decisions were made there (unlike, say, the <a href="http://www.orte-der-erinnerung.de/en/institutions/institutions_liste/house_of_the_wannsee_conference_memorial_and_educational_site/">Wannsee villa</a>, where the coordination of the Holocaust took place). </p>
<p>This stance downplays, however, the role of the house as a destination of Nazi pilgrimages during the Third Reich. Those associations with the Nazi Party and Hitler’s faithful deepened postwar perceptions of the place as a stain on the town’s honor. But trying to wipe it out with a wrecking ball underestimates the immaterial power of memory.</p>
<p>Over the years, various alternative solutions have been proposed for the house, including turning it into a museum and place of reconciliation. Why such cultural approaches are now being rejected is unclear. Perhaps it has to do with fears that a change in the political winds – as far right parties <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/05/22/world/europe/europe-right-wing-austria-hungary.html">grow in Europe</a> – would leave the house vulnerable to reappropriation in the future. </p>
<p>But as the earlier treatment of the Berghof shows, a void is no more secure – and perhaps even more dangerous.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/67620/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Despina Stratigakos does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>In the past, demolishing the dictator’s residences created a void exploited by Nazi sympathizers.Despina Stratigakos, Professor of Architecture, University at BuffaloLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/554042016-02-26T11:06:46Z2016-02-26T11:06:46ZWhy might a building unexpectedly collapse during demolition work?<p>Demolition work is the <a href="http://www.hse.gov.uk/statistics/industry/construction/construction.pdf">most dangerous job</a> in construction, which itself is one of the industries with the <a href="http://www.hse.gov.uk/sTATIsTICs/industry/index.htm">highest injury rates</a>. The tragic building collapse and loss of life at the disused Didcot A power plant in Oxfordshire is a stark reminder of just how dangerous demolition can be. </p>
<p>One person is dead and three are still missing after a large part of the main boiler house <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/feb/25/didcot-power-station-search-continues-for-three-missing-people">collapsed on February 23</a>. While it’s far too early to know what actually caused the accident, there are a number of reasons why buildings can collapse unexpectedly during – or just prior to – demolition. </p>
<p>Firstly, and most significantly, contractors may not fully appreciate the structural principles of the building they are dealing with. For example, if a key component – which could be an obvious large girder or something as small as a nut on a particular threaded steel rod – is removed the remaining building could become less stable and must be checked by a competent structural engineer. </p>
<p>Failing to understand the consequences of altering or removing key parts of a structure was tragically demonstrated when a building in Stanley Road, Liverpool <a href="http://www.lrb.co.uk/v22/n06/david-rose/when-the-mortar-doesnt-hold">collapsed in 2000</a>, killing one person. A steel beam had been bent back to allow access for a skip lorry and steel wall ties had been removed. Workers on the site <a href="http://wwt.uk.com/Resources/u/c/a/CDM%202015%20-%20Role%20of%20Principal%20Designer%20and%20Designer.pdf">weren’t aware</a> that alterations over time meant these walls had become more structurally important.</p>
<p>Problems of structural stability are further compounded by recent trends in environmental sustainability and the emergence of the “circular economy”, where components and contents of buildings are recovered for resale, reuse or recycling. For example, when a power plant is decommissioned recovery of machinery and equipment is to be expected. Precious metals can be sold on, brick and timber can be reused, and even the concrete can be crushed and recycled. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/112961/original/image-20160225-15182-183fcd1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/112961/original/image-20160225-15182-183fcd1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/112961/original/image-20160225-15182-183fcd1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/112961/original/image-20160225-15182-183fcd1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/112961/original/image-20160225-15182-183fcd1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/112961/original/image-20160225-15182-183fcd1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/112961/original/image-20160225-15182-183fcd1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/112961/original/image-20160225-15182-183fcd1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Modern machines enable demolition from a safe distance.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Verkhovynets Taras/Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>This <a href="https://dspace.lboro.ac.uk/dspace-jspui/bitstream/2134/9029/1/TRQ%20thesis%20final%20draft%20with%20corrections%202.11.11.pdf">presents significant hazards</a> as workers are required to work in the building to “deconstruct” the various elements, rather than use a long-reach demolition rig from a safe distance. It is not unusual to essentially cut a hole or doorway in the wall to allow large machinery to be easily moved in and out. An additional consequence of this method is it allows wind to flow through the building, which can “load” the walls beyond their tolerance levels. </p>
<p>If the cumulative effects of removing fixed machinery that could very well be attached to structural elements of the building, removing parts of walls, and other parts of the building are not considered, then the consequences could be catastrophic.</p>
<p>Explosions are the other main risk. In Didcot’s case, one avenue for investigation might be accidental detonation. After all, three of Didcot’s disused cooling towers were demolished with explosives in July 2014. However, cooling towers are relatively simple structures which lend themselves to explosive demolition rather than excavators or dismantling piece-by-piece. The building that collapsed was probably planned to be demolished by one of these more conventional means. However, such specialist explosive work is invariably undertaken under the control of an experienced explosives engineer, so the more obvious source of an explosion might come from what fuelled the building – gas or coal.</p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">Didcot A’s enormous cooling towers come tumbling down.</span></figcaption>
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<p>Gas may build up in the plant itself, leak from pipes over time, or could be present in a “live” pipe that was thought to be “dead” or isolated. In these cases, a spark or source of ignition could easily set off an explosion. Such explosions tend to kill indirectly, as the force causes walls to explode and the roof to fall down, crushing the workers below. This is what happened when corroded 35-year-old gas pipes caused the 2004 <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/business/2007/aug/28/uknews">Stockline Plastics factory explosion</a> in Glasgow which killed nine people.</p>
<p>Coal dust can also cause these sorts of explosions. In fact, most types of dust can cause an explosion if airborne and sufficiently agitated. With the right dust/air ratio, a substantial dust cloud can easily be ignited and cause an explosion equally as devastating as gas.</p>
<p>Early reports indicate an explosion just prior to the collapse at Didcot, though this was <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/live/2016/feb/23/explosion-at-didcot-power-station-reported-live-updates">later denied</a>. However, any causes identified here can only be considered as potential avenues for investigation. The UK’s Health and Safety Executive’s investigation will undoubtedly uncover the actual cause (or causes) of the collapse in due course. </p>
<p>Hopefully lessons can be learned for the future. But, of course, this will be of little consequence to the families of the dead and missing workers.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/55404/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Billy Hare does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>It’s a dangerous job and sometimes things don’t go to plan.Billy Hare, Professor of Construction Management, Glasgow Caledonian UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.