Qatar green plan to clean-up construction's act

Qatar’s Ministry of Environment has issued new standards for what qualifies as acceptable materials to recycle and re-use from construction waste.

The standards have been prepared in anticipation for the development of a new waste management facility, similar to the one currently operating near the Mesaieed Industrial City.

Mohammed Saif Al Kuwairi, undersecretary for laboratories and standardisation affairs, MoE, confirmed that the body is looking at companies to manage a new facility to process some of the 20,000 tonnes of construction and demolition waste generated daily.

At the moment, most of the 40%-50% of construction and demolition waste that is re-useable is deposited in landfills added Al Kuwairi.

With Qatar’s introduction of the Qatar Sustainability Assessment Standards, the facility will form an important part of the country’s sustainability in construction goals.

Al-Kuwari stated that from now on, all new government construction projects will meet strict sustainability standards. By 2016 all new civic buildings, including schools and hospitals, will have to meet mandated standards, starting from the design phase all the way through to final performance. By 2020, all new residential buildings will be required to meet strict sustainability standards, and retrofitting existing buildings will then be considered at that point.