Refurbishment and Fit Out / International / 2015 / 07 - Waste /

WST 01 - Construction Waste Management

Information correct as of 29thMarch 2024. Please see kb.breeam.com for the latest compliance information.

Contractor not yet appointed at the design stage - KBCN000002

Where the contractor has not been engaged at the design stage certification, it is acceptable to award the credits based on a commitment. This commitment must be from a suitable member of the design team, and must detail the targets and criteria which must be met. Evidence must also confirm that the details in the commitment will form part of the contractual requirements. Note: This does not apply to the requirement for a pre-demolition/pre-refurbishment audit, which must be undertaken at Concept Design Stage.
12 Jul 2022 - Note added to clarify the scope of this guidance
 

Demolition – external guidelines (incl BS 6187) - KBCN0630

Independent standards exist and some are referenced in the BREEAM manual and can be used to provide additional guidance for clients/design teams. Unless explicitly stated they are not 'deemed to satisfy' BREEAM criteria and assessors must demonstrate that BREEAM criteria have been met in the usual way. One such standard is BS 6187:2011 which gives good practice recommendations for the demolition (both full and partial) of facilities, including buildings and structures. The standard is therefore applicable to demolition activities undertaken as part of structural refurbishment. It also covers decommissioning. Unless explicitly stated external standards do not automatically satisfy BREEAM criteria and assessors must demonstrate that BREEAM criteria have been met in the usual way. 

Demolition records not available - KBCN1009

Where demolition records are missing, either wholly or in part, the credit available for diversion of construction and demolition waste from landfill cannot be achieved. This includes instances where demolition was conducted under a separate contract or by a third party on behalf of the developer.

Exemplary level criteria applicability - KBCN0973

Criterion 16 mistakenly refers to criteria 5-19, but should refer to criteria 5 to 15.
Technical manual to be updated accordingly in the next re-issue.

External works – waste reporting requirements - KBCN1379

Waste arising from external works does not need to be included within the calculations for construction resource efficiency. To do so would be incongruous with reporting waste relative to the building's floor area. This follows the logic of excluding excavation waste from this criterion. However, waste from external works should be addressed in the RMP and should also be reported in the calculations for the Diversion of resources from landfill credit, which is not reported relative to the building's floor area.

First fit-out of a shell only/shell and core development - KBCN00099

For assessments of a first fit-out of a new building the 'pre-refurbishment audit' credit is filtered out from the assessment.
03.11.2021 Issue 2.0 of the UK RFO technical manual amended.

Multiple developments monitoring construction waste on a site - KBCN00036

Where the same contractor is working on a site with more than one development, a single Site Waste Management Plan (SWMP)/Resource Management Plan (RMP) can be produced to demonstrate compliance, if it can be justified that separation of the waste would be impractical. Where the developments are of a similar nature, such as all new-build or all refurbishment with similar scope, the results from the whole development can be apportioned on the basis of floor area to derive the figures upon which the separate developments will be assessed. Where the buildings are not similar, the design team will need to provide calculations to demonstrate that the waste has been apportioned as accurately as possible according to the project types.
21/11/16 Clarification added in relation to dissimilar projects on the same site.

Pre-demolition audit requirement - KBCN0243

Where the site demolition/clearance does not form part of the principal contractor’s works, but has been undertaken by the developer for the purposes of enabling the assessed development, a pre-demolition audit must be carried out and referenced within the SWMP as per the guidance. Where justification and robust evidence can be provided, the following exceptions may apply: This requirement seeks to encourage good practice by developers and design teams in relation to previously developed sites.
28.03.2022 Reference to pre-refurbishment audit removed, and separate KBCN1504 drafted for pre-refurbishment audit exemptions.
11.12.2019 Additional exception added to align with KBCN1257 and guidance re-structured for clarity
22.11.2017 Reference added to the pre-refurbishment audit for RFO assessments.
15.11.2017 Wording amended for clarity

Pre-demolition audit/(pre-refurbishment) on other structures and hard surfaces - KBCN00045

A pre-demolition/(pre-refurbishment) audit is required where any existing buildings, structures or hard surfaces are present on a development site. The intent of the pre-demolition/(pre-refurbishment) audit is to ensure that any potentially useful materials are considered for re-use or diversion from landfill, not just materials resulting from buildings. 
22.11.17 Reference added to the pre-refurbishment audit for RFO assessments.

Pre-refurbishment audit – definition of ‘competent person’ - KBCN0756

For the purposes of Wst 01, criterion 1b, a ‘competent person’ for the pre-refurbishment audit is someone who has knowledge of the value and condition of materials and what can or cannot be repaired. Although the ‘relevant definition’ is missing, it is effectively provided later in the sentence as someone who ‘has appropriate knowledge of buildings, waste and options for the reuse and recycling of different waste streams.’ A demolition contractor would be ideal for the role, but could also be the main contractor. To clarify, the 'competent person' does not have to be independent of the project.
11.09.2017 - Clarification on the removal of the independence requirement added. This takes precedence over the technical manual, which will
be updated accordingly in next reissue.
03.11.2021 Issue 2.0 of the UK RFO technical manual updated.
 

Pre-refurbishment audit – minimal or no demolition/strip-out - KBCN1504

Where there is no demolition or strip-out whatsoever within the assessment scope, the credit may be awarded without a pre-refurbishment audit - for example, in the fit-out of a new-build shell. This follows the logic that where zero waste is being generated, the intent of the criteria is met. In such cases, robust evidence must be provided that a pre-refurbishment audit cannot be carried out. However, where there is even minimal demolition or strip-out within the scope of the assessment, a pre-refurbishment audit must still be undertaken. This audit should be in proportion to the scale and extent of these works.

Pre-refurbishment/demolition audit – late development - KBCN0537

Where the pre-refurbishment/demolition audit has not been done at RIBA stage 2/Concept Design, as required in the criteria, the credit can still be achieved. Robust evidence must be provided confirming that the timing of the pre-refurbishment/demolition audit has not compromised its ability to influence the design, consideration of materials re-use and the setting of targets for waste management. Evidence must demonstrate that this allowed decisions to be made before the start of strip-out/demolition works.
26.07.2018 Applicability of KBCN extended to include the UKNC2018 scheme.

Re-use and direct recycling of materials - KBCN0894

The ‘Re-use and direct recycling of materials’ criteria always apply, even where there is nothing being taken out of the building, i.e. there is no strip-out. This means that waste from the actual refurbishment works, i.e. the new products being installed, which may potentially be recycled or re-used, such as damaged products, off-cuts, spares, pallets, packaging - anything delivered to the site, can contribute to the requirements for these credits. The ‘Re-use and direct recycling of materials’ criteria apply, regardless of whether the ‘Pre-refurbishment audit’ credit is applicable.

Solid concrete washout - KBCN00063

Solid concrete washout waste should be included in the waste resource efficiency benchmarks.  

Strip-out works - KBCN0578

Waste generated by strip-out works should be excluded from the Resource Efficiency credits, because the project cannot control the amount of waste that will be produced from strip-out works.  

Using BRE SMARTWaste tool - KBCN0236

BRE SMARTWaste may be helpful in demonstrating the construction waste benchmarks; however its use is not compulsory to achieve the credits. Reference to the SMARTWaste tool has been included in the issue as an example of a tool that can be used to manage and monitor waste generated during construction.  
Information correct as of 29thMarch 2024. Please see kb.breeam.com for the latest compliance information.