Circular interventions during the demolition and enabling phase: An Irish case study

The global construction industry is the world’s largest consumer of raw materials and creates an estimated third of the world’s overall waste. A circular economy is one that aims to keep products, components and materials at their highest utility and value at all times. The Opera site development project in Limerick is being utilised as a Lighthouse Demonstrator Project for the Circular Built Environment. The site is a brownfield site located in the heart of Limerick City. The transformational commercial development which commenced in 2020 consists of office, retail, residential and public buildings on a 3.7-acre site. During the demolition and enabling phase of the project, a number of buildings were demolished. Prior to demolition, a pre-demolition audit was undertaken, and its purpose was to identify the type and quantities of the materials that would arise from the demolition works and possible opportunities to implement circular economy principles. This paper will conduct a case study on the Opera Square project located in Limerick, Ireland, and evaluate the circular economy interventions implemented during the demolition and enabling phase of the project. The study aims to assess the effectiveness of the interventions in achieving a diversion rate for construction and demolition material from landfill of 98%. The overall aim of this research project is to provide a suite of lessons learned which can be used to inform guidance factsheets for industry in relation to implementation of circular economy principles on construction projects.