Ancient Romans to Concrete Recycling
The form of bonding material known today as concrete is generally regarded as having first been used by the ancient Romans. It is a coarse granular material mixed with a hard binder that is common to foundations of buildings, highways, bridges, pavements, and dams. The impact of concrete and its contribution to greenhouse emissions is well documented, as are the advantages of it being recycled; for example, by concrete recycling in Sacramento.
A study conducted by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, the primary ingredient of concrete, namely cement, during its manufacturing process, becomes one of the main industrial sources of carbon dioxide. It presents a strong case on behalf of procedures, such as, concrete recycling in Sacramento, because cement contributes approximately 5% man-produced greenhouse gas emissions. However, the environmental impact of concrete production has further implications for our planet!
The procurement of sand and gravel, used as the granular filler for concrete has the capacity of disrupting the environments from which they are extracted. An example of this is seen in steam mining, which has been prohibited in several jurisdictions that include many parts of the United States and Canada. The process of concrete recycling in Sacramento when compared to dredging sand and gravel directly from riverbeds and floodplains shows the damage being sustained to our environment, by outdated methods in obtaining construction materials!
This dredging process can cause erosion and affect water quality, as well as disrupting local ecosystems. This is supplemented by the more usual practice of open pit mining for aggregates, which again, when compared to concrete recycling in Sacramento, is like a trip back to the ancient Romans. Although this process avoids threats to aquatic ecosystems, it can influence the destruction of natural habitats, create land erosion, noise pollution, and a great volume of silica dust into the atmosphere!