As Canada continues to grow, and needs of the environment are becoming increasingly apparent, it is time for construction management to embrace sustainable practices more than it has ever done before. Building is something that is essential to sustain and maintain growth. The construction and maintenance of buildings is something that is vital to our growing society and economy, but it comes at a cost to the environment. These environmental costs come from many places, including extensive energy use, greenhouse gas emissions, waste, water contamination and other sources of negative environmental impacts. There is a need for sustainable construction management because currently the potential for minimizing the environmental impact is tremendous, for example, the construction and demolition of buildings accounts for nearly half of all energy end use across the world, so Canadians must take an active role in minimizing their ecological footprint when it comes to the construction. It is all about balancing the needs of society, against the needs of the environment, in a way that will last for generations to come.
[...] Another initiative that should be used in sustainable construction management is sustainable urban drainage techniques as a way to causing surface runoff patterns to be more sustainable and natural. Sustainable building construction has a lot to do with the building itself, but it is also concerned with how the building interacts with the external environment. This means that drainage is an important consideration, and it must be designed and implemented in a way that is the least invasive and harmful to the environment. [...]
[...] For example, if a building is constructed to have large open spaces, then there is likelihood that these spaces will be wasteful in terms of energy. The amount of open space, and the way that space will be used in general needs to be a consideration when it comes to sustainable construction management. (El-Diraby, 2003). The construction process is another stage of the process that requires much consideration, as the process itself can contribute to noise and environmental pollution. Therefore, the construction process must [...]
[...] Water becomes an important consideration in this category. Sustainable construction management must seek to maximize water conservation technologies. (Halfawy & Hunaidi, 2008). These can include techniques like water metering, automatic taps, rainwater harvesting, black- water treatment to allow for re-use of water on-site and even small initiatives like zero/low-flush toilets. Initiatives like these might incur higher costs during the construction phase, but will save money and have a positive effect on the environment and sustainability in the long- run. (De Sousa, 2002). [...]
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