Written in partnership with Lauren CarpenterUnknown to many, construction is one of the most resource-intensive and wasteful industries globally. To grasp the scale of resource extraction, it’s worth noting that the world extracts some 100 billion tons of raw material annually. This is equivalent to destroying two-thirds of Mount Everest’s mass each year. Approximately half of these extracted materials find their way into construction projects.
According to a report by Transparency Market Research, the volume of construction waste generated worldwide is set to nearly double to 2.2 billion tons by 2025. In 2018, the United States generated 600 million tons of construction and demolition (C&D) debris. This figure is more than twice the produced municipal solid waste. Perhaps more concerning is that 146 million tons were sent directly to landfills.
These statistics pose a critical question: Why is there a need to extract new resources when there’s a significant amount of reusable materials lying dormant in storage areas and landfills? With this in mind, adopting reduce, reuse, and recycle policies within the construction industry has become more urgent.
There’s growing awareness and initiatives to recycle construction materials, but there are still many challenges that hinder progress. Some of these include insufficient resources, lack of standardization, narrow profit margins, policy inertia, and inadequate education on waste management. Due to this, the Asia Pacific region is poised to generate the majority of construction waste in the coming years, closely followed by North America.
Keara Sexton and her dedicated team present a unique solution to this problem. They developed Rubble, a groundbreaking marketplace app for buying and selling leftover tools and materials, to revolutionize construction waste management. The idea behind this app stems from Sexton’s experience of struggling with discarding leftover materials in perfect condition from her home renovation.
“I’ve witnessed firsthand how much waste is generated during construction and demolition processes. This made me realize how big our individual impact on the environment is,” Sexton states. Driven by her desire to contribute to addressing the broader problem, she made it her mission to provide a more organized and focused marketplace for DIYers, homeowners, and contractors to reuse and recycle construction materials.
The co-founder then gathered a dedicated team to realize her vision. With her rich background in marketing and experience working for esteemed companies, Sexton brings a unique value proposition to Rubble. Meanwhile, social media marketing expert Frankie Hanlon transitioned to software development, making Rubble his first major project. Nicole Cimmarusti and Lee Sexton complete the Rubble team, leveraging their diverse skills to position the app at the forefront of the industry.
The primary goal of Rubble is to divert usable supplies from landfills and mitigate environmental degradation while conserving landfill space. “Every day, construction materials in good condition just end up in landfills. This results in increased waste output. We aim to stop this cycle,” Sexton shares.
Besides helping contractors, homeowners, and DIY enthusiasts repurpose materials for new projects, Rubble has multiple other benefits. One of them is increased business opportunities within local communities. The app can also help lower overall building project expenses and reduce the environmental impact associated with resource extraction and production. Lastly, Rubble empowers laborers to save on dump fees, declutter storage spaces, and generate additional income.
Sexton emphasizes that embracing sustainability isn’t only about safeguarding the environment. It’s also about initiating innovation and driving the development of better products, methodologies, and awareness within the industry. Regardless of whether users are motivated by financial savings or a genuine commitment to sustainability, Rubble offers a solution for individuals and businesses to reduce waste and maximize resources.
Rubble is an innovative platform for contributing to the reduction of construction waste. By repurposing discarded materials into valuable assets, it aims to continue offering forward-thinking solutions that mitigate environmental harm, encourage innovation, and open up economic opportunities.
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