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Construction & Demolition Waste Management in

Mauritius – Policy MakingPresented by: Mr Sarvesh Ramdowar

Programme:

Coordinator:

Submission Date: 30th June 2011

Parallel to rapid urbanization in Mauritius, environmental impacts from construction and demolition (C & D) waste increasingly become a major issue in urban waste management.The study includes the C & D waste management in urban and urbanising countries including the corresponding instruments these countries develop and implement. The findings are expected to assist the decision making process in the formulation of interventions including policies for improving C & D waste management in Mauritius. In this context, my report is based on sustainable development and sustainable construction in the local industry. It describes the overarching implementation approaches for Materials Resource Efficiency (MRE) associated with demolition and construction activities, with a decision-making framework which emphasises the need to reuse, then recycle, with landfill as a last resort.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

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Construction & Demolition Waste Management in Mauritius – Policy Making

1. INTRODUCTION

Currently Mauritius is experiencing a period of development and change in its infrastructure

requirements. There is an infrastructure deficit that requires significant investment across all sectors,

including transport, waste management, energy, flood defence, water and waste water, and ports and

harbours. According to research, there is significant demand for new housing and changing requirements

in the commercial sector reflecting transition from a manufacturing industry to services.

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WASTE MANAGEMENT IN MAURITIUS

The rapid industrialisation and urbanisation during the past decade have led to changing

production and consumption patterns that continue to present new demands for natural resources

and create new waste streams. It is estimated that solid waste produced in Mauritius is about

380,000 tonnes a year (or 1,200 tonnes per day) and is expected to reach 418,000 tonnes in 2014.

Each Mauritian generates around 0.7 kg of solid waste daily and this is expected to rise to 0.9 kg

by 2010. The development of an integrated solid waste management strategy is among the

priorities identified in the National Environmental Strategies to reduce future costs from

environment degradation.

The Ministry of Local Government and the Rodrigues Regional Assembly are responsible for

solid waste management. Solid waste collection is undertaken by the local authorities in areas

under their jurisdiction and disposed of at the Mare Chicose landfill via a network of transfer

stations situated at St Martin, Roche Bois, Poudre d’Or, La Laura and La Brasserie.

Wastes are compacted at the transfer station to reduce their volume before they are transported in

larger vehicles to the sole landfill of the country which is at Mare Chicose. The landfill began its

operations in November 1997 and has since been accepting waste from all the transfer stations

and from the southern region of the island.

The transfer stations carry out compaction of waste prior to their transportation to the landfill

site. The Mare Chicose landfill, which was originally planned to receive 400 tonnes of waste

daily, is now receiving about 1000 tonnes as the Mare D’Australia landfill has not been

implemented. Hence, the life span of the disposal site at Mare Chicose has dramatically been

reduced from 19 years to 8 years. Green (or garden) waste is estimated to represent a significant

share (as high as 60 percent) of collected waste, lending itself very easily to composting. Current

practice is for the solid waste to be landfilled, but this solid waste management technique is of

limited long-term scope for Mauritius because of scarce land resources. Methane gas produced at

landfill is currently partially captured and flared.

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Government spending amounts to nearly Rs 500 million per annum for the collection,

transportation and disposal of refuse waste. This amount includes the collection costs of over Rs

300 million per year and about Rs 155 million is incurred yearly for the operation of transfer

stations (Rs 75 m) and disposal site at Mare Chicose (Rs 80 m), which are operated by private

contractors. In spite of heavy investment, the present disposal system is inadequate.

CONSTRUCTION & DEMOLITION WASTE

Interest is growing in the use of construction and demolition waste in new buildings, thereby

alleviating the environmental problem of disposal. Construction and Demolition Debris (C & D),

also known as inert waste, is commonly known as rubble.

The construction sector is one of the most important in the economy of any country, but it also

has a serious impact on the environment, from the extraction of aggregate and production of

cement to the proliferation of rubbish dumps and dust that is harmful for health and the

environment. The extraction of aggregates involves shifting huge amounts of soil, especially near

rivers, producing changes in these ecosystems. On the other hand, the production of cement is

one of the dirtiest industrial processes known, since it produces atmospheric emissions, liquid

effluents and solid wastes, many of them dangerous.

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MANAGING CONSTRUCTION & DEMOLITION WASTE

The generation of C & D debris increases with urban growth. The volume of construction and

demolition debris in Europe is between two and three kilograms per capita per day (a rate higher

than that of urban waste).

Until very recently, this waste was disposed of, almost entirely, in landfills. Given the low price

of land-filling, no other more environmentally friendly operation was competitive. However, the

high cost of landfill management, the saturation of these areas, as well as the obstacles faced by

municipalities in getting approval for new landfills, has made the management of C & D debris

of particular interest.

C & D debris management now presents a very different picture from country to country. Some

countries with low availability of aggregate and advanced environmental policies, such as

Holland and Denmark, have adopted specific initiatives aimed at regulating such management,

penalizing the disposal of waste that can be reused or recycled. It is estimated that in the

Netherlands 60% of C & D debris produced annually is reused in new sustainable buildings.

Through the recycling of C & D debris new aggregate is obtained that can be reused and

marketed as offering a complete range of building material. With a minimal amount of

processing we can get: concrete, quarry run, brick, gravel for gardens, bases and sub-bases for

road paving, etc.

The reuse of these materials brings not only environmental but also economic benefits. This

activity also helps to curb the over-exploitation of natural aggregates and quarries.

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