UFC 1-900-01
1 DECEMBER 2002
applicable to specific sites and situations where demolition by other methods cannot be
employed either due to severe restrictions on site access or because it can cause
serious nuisance and damage. Such sites are usually found in downtown areas,
underground facilities, etc. In these situations, manual deconstruction is a matter of
necessity.
4-3.1 Demolish (Site Accessibility). Conventional demolition requires that the site be
accessible by truck. This method is generally efficient regardless of accessibility to the
site and site conditions. High-rise buildings that are higher than 15 stories must be
partially demolished by manual methods. Use of mechanical demolition methods for
higher multi-story buildings can cause serious air pollution and hazard problems in the
vicinity of these tall structures.
4-3.2 Recycle (Site Accessibility). If debris is separated for recycling off-site, site
accessibility and site conditions have no impact on the effectiveness of recycling. If
debris is separated on-site for pick-up, space will need to be available to accommodate
separation activities and collection receptacles. On-site processing requires allocation
of space for mobile crushers and screens, and space to pile sorted materials. Such
space may not always be available.
4-3.3 Recover (Site Accessibility). Additional square footage at each building site
should be available for separating, processing, and removing materials recovered from
the building. The most desirable option is to reuse the recovered materials on site.
However, that is not always possible and the recovered materials have to be
transported to local markets. Truck access should be available around each building's
perimeter. Extremely limited space availability and/or truck access to each building may
adversely impact the effectiveness of recovery/reuse strategy.
4-3.4 Deconstruct (Site Accessibility). Deconstruction is most feasible if there is an
open site that allows ample space for on-site handling and processing of materials as
they are removed from the building. The site should be organized so that different types
of materials can be segregated simultaneously without conflicting during processing.
Marking on the ground with paint for varying dimensional lengths facilitates sorting by
size and saves time. Where buildings (or major portions thereof) are to be removed
intact, large clearances will be required. If heavy equipment is needed for removal, this
will also require additional space on the site.
LANDFILL BURDEN. Tables 4-1 and 4-2 list the relative landfill burdens per
4-4
building type. The amount of material generated from demolition activities is
generally proportional to the size of the structure being demolished. The
materials generated vary according to the construction type. The following
examples (of commercial buildings) can be used to estimate the materials of
value that can be extracted with each method.
4-11
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