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Construction and demolition materials
Instructions
Construction and demolition debris covers a broad spectrum of materials, with possibly greatly differing modes of potential recycling or disposal. You can contact the Berkeley Transfer Station 1201 2nd St. Berkeley CA 94704 (510) 981-7270 OR Independent Recycling Services 9039 San Leandro Street, 94603 Oakland, CA (510) 567-3676 Ask if they accept the particular items you have. These will be a paid drop-off, not a pick-up. CalRecycle's C&D Guide offers some information on construction materials using recycled content.
Alternatives
Urban Ore, in Berkeley, will accept drop-off of some used, or scrap construction materials, and the material should be reusable as-is. Examples of what Urban Ore accepts are: glass, shower doors, toilets, sinks, bathtubs, lumber, (metal) pipe & fittings, metal vents, security doors, tile & stone, trim wood, doors, cabinets, door and window hardware, etc. All of these need to be reusable as-is.
Learn MoreFacts
Construction and demolition (C&D) materials are estimated to account for between 21.7 to 25.5 percent of the disposed waste stream (in CA, for 2014). Common C&D materials include lumber, drywall, metals, masonry (brick, concrete, etc.), carpet, plastic, pipe, rocks, dirt, paper, cardboard, or green waste related to land development. Many of these materials can be reused or recycled, thus prolonging our supply of natural resources and potentially saving money in the process. Of these, metals are the most commonly recycled material while lumber makes up the majority of debris that still goes to a landfill (and wood in a landfill generates methane gas, a powerful, unwanted, greenhouse gas).
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