Identifying the Barriers to Sustainable Management of Construction and Demolition Waste in Developed and Developing Countries

Ali Al-Otaibi, Patrick Aaniamenga Bowan, Mahmoud M. Abdel Daiem, Noha Said, John Obas Ebohon, Aasem Alabdullatief, Essa Al-Enazi and Greg Watts
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Ali Al-Otaibi: Civil Engineering Department, College of Engineering, Shaqra University, Al-Dawadmi 11911, Saudi Arabia
Patrick Aaniamenga Bowan: Department of Civil Engineering, School of Engineering, Dr. Hilla Limann Technical University (Formerly Wa Polytechnic), Wa P.O. Box 553, Ghana
Mahmoud M. Abdel Daiem: Civil Engineering Department, College of Engineering, Shaqra University, Al-Dawadmi 11911, Saudi Arabia
Noha Said: Environmental Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Zagazig University, Zagazig 44519, Egypt
John Obas Ebohon: School of Built Environment and Architecture, London South Bank University (LSBU), London SE1 0AA, UK
Aasem Alabdullatief: Department of Architecture and Built Environment, College of Architecture and Planning, King Saud University, Ar Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia
Essa Al-Enazi: General Administration for Investment and Privatization, Ministry of Education, Ar Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia
Greg Watts: School of Science, Engineering and Environment, University of Salford, Salford M5 4NT, UK

Sustainability, 2022, vol. 14, issue 13, 1-17

Abstract: The construction industry is a vital part of every nation’s economy. Construction activities influence the social, environmental, and economic aspects of sustainability. There are so many barriers to sustainable construction and demolition waste management (C&DWM). This study aims to identify barriers for effective sustainable C&DWM in developed and developing countries. To achieve the objective, 11 barriers have been selected and identified based on an excessive and comprehensive literature review, and then reviewed by experts. These reviewed barriers were further examined by various experts within different organizations using a questionnaire survey. Ranking of the barriers was carried out using the Relative Importance Index (RI), and the results were statistically analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). Practical solutions were proposed to overcome the identified barriers. The overall ranking of barriers by RI indicates that insufficient attention paid to C&DWM, lack of law enforcement, lack of regulation, and financial constraints represent the four major barriers to sustainable C&DWM in these countries. The findings of this study and the proposed solutions are enablers for decision-makers to develop effective strategies to tackle construction and demolition wastes in sustainable manners.

Keywords: barriers; sustainability; construction and demolition waste; waste management; relative importance index (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (8)

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