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MassDEP deconstruction working group plans in-person workshop; new bulky-item subgroup announced
Summary
MassDEP said the deconstruction working group will hold a full-day in-person workshop to develop recommendations for expanding building-material reuse in Massachusetts and is forming a new subgroup focused on bulky residential and commercial items.
The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection said its deconstruction working group is moving to a new phase that includes a full-day, in-person workshop to develop recommendations for expanding reuse of building materials and to reduce construction and demolition waste.
Janice Pare, who leads education and outreach for MassDEP’s municipal lease reduction branch, briefed the Reduce and Reuse Working Group on Jan. 22. The deconstruction working group was formed in May 2022 as part of the agency’s reduce and reuse action plan and has met with stakeholders across government, the construction industry, preservation planners, recyclers and nonprofits over multiple webinars.
“The goal is to develop recommendations or opportunities to maximize reuse and to reduce construction and demolition waste from building projects and demolition projects,” Pare said. She said the next phase includes a pre-workshop virtual meeting and a facilitated, full-day in-person workshop with representatives from targeted sectors across the state. Pare said the solicitation for the workshop facilitator has already been published on COMMBUYS.
Separately, MassDEP staff announced an intention to form a new subgroup focused on bulky items — durable goods such as furniture, fixtures and equipment in businesses and large household items such as appliances, cabinetry, doors and vanities. Pare said the subgroup will study ways to redirect usable bulky items to their highest-value reuse before recycling or disposal.
Pare invited practitioners who already repair, reuse and redistribute bulky items to join the subgroup and said staff had included an interest question in the meeting registration. She asked prospective participants to email staff to be added to a planning contact list.
MassDEP also said it will develop programs and resources to support recommendations that emerge from the workshop, and that more specifics will follow once a facilitator is in place. Interested parties should monitor MassDEP communications and the announced COMMBUYS solicitation for updates.
