Many thanks to those of you who attended the webinar "Deconstruction and Reuse for Greenhouse Gas Emission Reduction" with Bradley Guy, Assistant Professor in the Master of Science in Sustainable Design program, School of Architecture + Planning, The Catholic University of America, and a consultant on green building, deconstruction and design for Materials Reuse.The recording of the webinar is available here. The slides can be accessed separately here. 

Brad discussed how building deconstruction and reuse is a tool for both waste reduction and low impact construction. He stressed the importance of Life Cycle Assessment in making building decisions. Finally, Brad spoke about the North American and European guidance for building deconstruction and reuse.

Benefits of deconstruction include:
1. Conserve natural resources
2. Extend embodied energy
3. Reduce landfills requirement
4. Management of hazardous materials
5. Enhance profit and cost-savings
6. New businesses, jobs, value-adding
7. Reduced site environmental impacts 

Benefits of reuse include:
1. Efficient materials use
2. Materials heritage
3. Historic preservation
4. Local manufacturing opportunities
5. Cost-savings
6. High quality and unique materials
7. Reduce waste 

Brad spoke about Life Cycle Assessment as including:
1. Deconstruction/demolition process
2. Disposal of materials by landfilling
3. Transportation between the stages
4. Reuse/recycling of salvaged materials
5. Replacement of virgin materials. 


Questions from the audience included:  

• Is cost not a major impediment?Does it not cost more to deconstruct a building using manual labour than to demolish it using machinery?
• I am interested in the CO2 impacts of materials in environmental projects. For example, green rooves require the use of new butyl rubber waterproofing membrane. They have environmental benefits but are such projects worthwhile? I'm interested specifically in the CO2 cost versus the crbon capture benefits of green roofs (as new green spaces which absorb carbon). Can you speak to this?
• I have a comment on the last point in slide 27. I think it is important to view the forest as a whole instead of a single tree. For example, logging a forest while initially reducing forest carbon allow for the forest to regrow and sequester more carbonthan an unlogged forest that will reach an equilibrium sooner than the logged forest. There may be additional benefits in having a working forest related to carbon. 
• Did you produce the GHC data referenced on slides 23 and 24.....demolition vs. deconstruction? If not, could you cite the study? Thank you. 

Further UK and North Americans resources include:

• Building Research Establishment 
• Bioregional- Construction
• Demolition Protocol 2008 - From the Institute of Civil Engineers
• Waste and Resources Action Programme
• Canadian Standards Association- Construction
• The US Green Building Council - LEED Certification
• LEED Documentation of C&D Waste Diversion

The resources specifically requested by attendees:

• Demolition Energy Analysis of Office Building Structural Systems by the Athena Institute 
• The Inventory of Carbon and Energy - This resource is only available for a cost, but there is some analysis on why low-carbon buildings need low embodied energy.
• "Life Cycle Analysis of the Deconstruction of Military Barracks: Ft. McClellan, Anniston, AL" in the Journal of Green Building (Vol. 1, No. 4, Fall 2006, pp. 166-183). (Only available to subscribers.)