Outstanding Green Project Award winner – HSBC Living Business Awards 2008
Project: A Green Demolition Project

Chun Long Construction Limited was established in 1997 and engages mainly in the demolition of buildings.

‘A Green Demolition Project’, which involved demolition and disposal of all existing structures at the Disciplined Services Departmental Quarters, took place in nine locations across Hong Kong with a total of 35 blocks and 450 storeys.

Despite various environmental and social challenges posed by the size, nature and timeline of the project, Chun Long’s commitment and hard work, together with the good coordination of the site workers, was rewarded with outstanding performance in the areas of waste and noise management and conservation of natural vegetation.

In waste management, Chun Long made good use of construction waste through various measures. At the demolition sites, damaged dust screens, bamboo scaffolds and hoardings were repaired or amended for reuse, while glass taken down from the demolished buildings was collected for Hong Kong Polytechnic University to recycle and produce glass paving blocks. All broken down concrete was sent to make road paving for landfills, and the ceramic wash basins from the buildings were reused on site by the site workers.

For noise management, Chun Long invested in hydraulic crushers which produce much less noise than the traditional pneumatic breakers. DIY movable noise barriers were used by the site workers to reduce noise from the demolition machinery.

For the community, Chun Long set up a Liaison Team to coordinate with the neighbours at each demolition site. This also served to ensure the proper scheduling of works and handling of any enquiries or complaints. In addition, a temporary cover was set up over the outdoor playground of a school near one of the demolition sites in Shatin to minimise the impact of dust and noise. All these extra efforts were made to ensure the smooth running and completion of the project without causing inconvenience to the public.

Key achievements of Chun Long’s project included a 54% reduction in construction and demolition waste disposed to landfill (5 tonnes of glass and 9,000 tonnes of steel were recycled, and approximately 200,000 tonnes of concrete debris were reused). The overall feedback from clients, business partners and the public was positive as a result of comprehensive and effective public engagement before, during and after the demolition work.