August 1999

We don’t often give thought to how much garbage we generate on our island—from our homes, businesses, schools, shopping centers, industrial parks. Each year it adds up to a whopping 1.5 million tons of waste, with almost 500,000 tons of that generated from construction and demolition (C & D). So you can understand why the next directions in recycling are already focused on C & D material. 

The bulk of the C & D material is comprised of aggregate, wood, asphalt and metals. Local companies, including Island Demo (featured here), Hawaii Metal Recycling, Transcend, Hawaiian Bitumuls, Grace Pacific and Kiewit Pacific, are already actively engaged in recycling C & D materials. It benefits all of us to encourage more recycling of these materials. My thanks to all of you in the Partnership for the Environment who are leading the way.—Mayor Jeremy Harris

About the Partnership
The Partnership for the Environment is a coalition of businesses coordinated by the City & County of Honolulu to support recycling, waste reduction and purchasing recycled-content products. The Partnership offers resources, guides, technical assistance, a speakers bureau and peer consulting and publicly recognizes businesses for their efforts. The Partnership‘s growing coalition of peer consultants is willing to share its expertise to assist other businesses in developing intelligent recycling programs. For more information and to become a partner, call the City‘s Recycling Office at 527-5335.





Demolition specialist committed to preserving the environment
One man’s trash is another’s treasure. But for Mike Leary, there is no such thing as real trash. His tendency to convert trash to treasure began at the age of 10 when he collected bottles and cans for money, which he usually spent on firecrackers. As he grew up, Leary became convinced that everything had some value. 

“Trash is made by choice,” he says. “It’s a decision made by ignoring the potential value of an object and simply burying it.”
As president and CEO of Island Demo Inc., Leary has turned this philosophy into a successful 10-year-old business. Hawaii’s construction industry produces as much as 500,000 tons of waste annually, including concrete, metals, wood, wall board, tile and roofing materials. 

All of this “trash” was ending up in a landfill. With the introduction of the state’s first and only permitted recycling transfer station for construction and demolition materials, Island Demo is creating treasure while conserving Hawaii’s limited landfill space. The company’s transfer station became a milestone in the state’s efforts at more cost-effective and less intrusive solid waste management. Island Demo’s gross revenues have jumped from $800,000 in 1988 to $4 million in 1999. It has also become Hawaii’s leader in re-utilization of construction and demolition material into recyclable products. Only 70% of the construction and demolition material that arrives at Island Demo’s facility ends up at Oahu’s only C & D landfill. That may sound like a high percentage, but when one considers that 100% of the island’s construction waste went into the landfill unrecycled just two years ago, recycling 30% is quite an accomplishment.

Though its name has become synonymous with C & D recycling, Island Demo earned its reputation by specializing in state-of-the-art interior demolition that leaves structures trade-ready. These services also include site assessment and computerized estimating and analysis. The recycling approach is the logical evolution of the demolition business in Hawaii.



Mike Leary, President
Island Demo, Inc.

 


Construction Debris Transfer

 

 

Call for a free RECYCLING AT WORK video 527-5335