Sultan Faden says the destruction of mountains to produce gravel should stop and this can be achieved with a little effort.
He also claims the mountain of rubbish created in Al-Khumra and other similar places in the outskirts of major cities are a direct threat to public health. Radiation and gases emanating from cement-mixed sand, paints and petrochemical products are hazardous.
Faden says the best way to deal with construction waste is to recycle it, as is done in Europe and at least one country from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).
Fresh from a visit to Kuwait along with environmentalists from other GCC countries, Faden told Arab News it was high time authorities in Saudi Arabia pass necessary regulations for the recycling of solid waste “if we want to achieve the goal of sustainable development.”
Kuwait has reportedly passed a law making it mandatory for owners of construction projects to deliver their debris to the Environmental Protection and Industrial Co., a company that processes the waste and sells it on as gravel.
The Masdar project in Abu Dhabi, which bills itself as the first sustainable city in the world, is another example. There, 98 percent of its construction waste is recycled every day.
Faden is head of the Founding Group of the Saudi Green Building Council (SGBC), a nonprofit organization working under the umbrella of the Presidency of Meteorology and Environment.
He defines construction waste as solid debris that comes out of excavation and construction. It includes pieces of used concrete, marble, plastic, petrochemicals, papers, asphalt, products of paints, gravels and small steel pieces that cannot be detached from concrete.
Faden and other members of the SGBC recently visited a rubbish site east of Jeddah, where they found big pieces of marble, gypsum, ceiling boards and ceramics, many of them untouched. These could be reused without having to recycle them, he said.
All major cities in the GCC are currently witnessing massive construction activities. It is estimated half of solid waste in the Gulf comes from construction sites. Kuwait alone produces 2,000 to 2,500 tons of construction waste per day, according to figures from the country. No such data is available for Saudi Arabia or the rest of the GCC countries.
Faden claimed since Saudi Arabia is the biggest country in the Gulf, it is also the largest contributor of solid waste in the Gulf.
In Jeddah, it is mandatory for the owners of construction projects to deliver its debris to a designated place. The Jeddah municipality has licensed some companies for this purpose.
However, Faden claims the municipality is either ignoring the designated dump or simply using it for landfill, another cause for environmental concern. He claimed the same thing was happening in Riyadh, Dammam and other Saudi cities. “It’s like doing half your homework. After collecting the debris, the municipality is not making any meaningful use of it.”
He called on municipalities in Jeddah and other cities to launch recycling factories. He also appealed for stronger regulations to protect mountains from crushers and instead use gravel from recycled material. “Europe does everything to protect its nature. It tries to conserve its mountains and forest resources by recycling up to 75 percent of its solid waste. While we show enthusiasm in importing their technology, we should also show the same enthusiasm in importing their attitude to nature.”