Construction and demolition waste in Lezha

Abstract

Lezha is a city that has its beginnings in 385 BC. The geographical position of the city, together with its surroundings, has made Lezha one of the most important commercial and military-military centers since ancient times. Considering how old it is as a city and how much development it has had over the years, we can say that construction in this city is quite developed. The last 10 years there is an explosion of high-rise buildings near the beach in Shëngjin and in the city of Lezha. C&D (construction and demolition) waste are waste generated during the construction time of various facilities and from the demolition of buildings for various reasons. So in Lezha city are present both type of waste. C&D waste materials typically include soils, concrete (which is going to be the material analyzed in this paper), bricks, glass, wood, plasterboard, asbestos, metals and plastics. In the amount of the waste the amount of concrete waste was also affected by the November 26 earthquake because many houses and mansions were damaged and remain non-functional and the only thing that could be done was to collapse. The fact that Lezha is a city with highly developed tourism in both sea, agro-cultural and mountain tourism has made the buildings increase in number or be rebuilt to meet the contemporary requirements of tourist needs. Also it is foreseen by the local institutions of Albania that by 2031 in the city of Lezha to generate 24219 tons per year of inert waste as a consequence of the increase of tourism and the predictions for the increase of the population. The problem with construction waste, especially concrete, is that although many years pass, the concrete is not degradable, it remains as it was produced and in the place of disposal. By not treating the waste properly many agricultural lands will be turned into landfills with construction waste, we will have an environmental impact and in protected areas, tourist and public spaces for citizens. This paper focus on an analysis of the C&D waste in the city of Lezha. The purpose of the study is to present the management situation of C&D waste in Lezha and based on this policy to provide some short-term and long-term solutions to solve the problems that come as a result of mismanagement of this waste. Using alternative management routes could result in both environmental and cost savings, also on a better development of tourisms.