HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0128.139 2010-2012 Page 1 of 1
Murashige, Laura PI CotlraaL.
From: Paul J. Buklarewicz [pjb01 @hawaii.rr.com]
Sent: Tuesday, January 31, 2012 11:31 AM
To: counciltestimony @co.hawaii.hi.us
Subject: IN SUPPORT of THE WITHDRAWAL OR REQUEST FOR POSTPONEMENT OF BILL 270
For WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 1, 2012
IN RE Bill 270
Council Members:
The possibility of the purported exclusion of standards for the use of recycled/repurposed/reuse
materials in the revised building code that the County of Hawaii is poised to adopt is of great concern to
practitioners of an evolving industry—that is, Construction & Demolition (C&D)--the processing and
use of leftover construction materials and fixtures that would otherwise be lost to our island landfills.
Non-profit organizations such as Recycle Hawai'i, Habitat for Humanity, as well as for-profit
construction enterprises continually collaborate in efforts toward achieving the County's landfill
diversion goals on notable building projects that attain various levels of LEED (Leadership in Energy and
Environmental Design) accreditation that encourages the recycling/reuse/repurposing of
construction/demolition materials.
For example,ground glass cullet from recycled containers and broken up porcelain toilet fixtures, old
concrete sidewalks and asphalt roadways work well in the construction of retaining walls, landscaping,
and road-building projects while diverting these materials from our landfills. The use of glass and plastic
bottles, earthen-filled rubber tires,used but still usable roofing materials, etc., also make use of
available discarded resources in home-building and remodeling projects.
It was not just for lip service that the current County of Hawai'i Integrated Resources/Solid Waste
Management Plan (emphasis mine) includes for the first time the word "Resources" as going forward we
will have to rely more and more on available resources in order to sustain economic growth under rising
population pressure on a planet/island with finite resources.
Eliminating,whether intentionally or inadvertently,,from the.Building Code acceptable standards in the
use of recycled/reuse materials will significantly increase the cost of building for all parties in a time-
consuming appeals process. I,therefore, urge the Council to withdraw Bill 270 until the Code that is
presented for adoption is clarified to a form that is cohesive, reasonable, understandable and readily
available to the layman/builder/home remodeler while eliminating the prospect of costly appellate
procedures in the permitting process.
Paul J. Buklarewicz, Executive Director 1
Recycle Hawai'i r-Z3
Phone: (808) 969-2012 Fax: (808) 969-2014 =
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