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Abundant Materials Jargon Buster

Abundant Materials Jargon Buster
About:

Definition:
Material/product that is naturally abundant, sufficient for future needs at future consumption rates

Examples:
mined or scraped materials
sand, gravel, soils, rock,

Material applications:
Ground modelling,
Earth walls,
Brown Roofs,
claddings,
paving,
fills,
landscape

Reservations:
Use of synthetic, petrochemical, heavy metals, hazardous: treatments, binders, additives, etc.

Exceptions/Exclusions:
Landscape and biodiversity degradation
No beneficial use of by-product or waste
Waste generated and stored at ground level or deposited in landfill/landrise
Requires vast amounts of energy to extract a metal from an ore, or material from an oxide

Examples:
Metals: High energy or CO2 intense processing for use (aluminium especially)
Limestone for cement production (lime preferred)

Advantages:
Some reuse potential at end of building life
Return to land, landscape or agricultural use

Potential substitutes:
Recycled aggregates
Recycled waste

(CAP’EM BRM ’10 & GreenSpec BRM ’11)