Environmental Tips: How to Dispose of Construction and Demolition Waste

Some rural areas of Ventura County are difficult to recycle, so people living in these areas have come up with innovative recycling ideas that can benefit us all.
Perhaps the smartest and most artistic recent effort involved repurposing a corrugated metal roof that was previously used for a warehouse structure next to a lodge in the Los Padres National Forest. Pure steel only costs about 3 cents a pound, and hauling bulky pieces of metal to scrap yards is time consuming and costly. Hiring a commercial mover will cost more.
Instead, the Daigle family had a great idea. Cleaned up the corrugated metal roof and fixed it under the cabin ceiling in one room.
Now, at least in this room, the hut resembles a more rustic outpost, as if the roof were just a single piece of corrugated metal. Of course, the actual ceiling and roof extend over it, providing insulation and protection.
Larry Daigle used another piece of corrugated steel for the trim in front of the cockpit. He painted an American flag on it, and the ripples made it look like the flag was flying. It also provides wind protection for the cottage yard.
Continuing the reuse work, the Daigle family covered drywall with stucco into the soil in areas requiring increased porosity and reduced acidity; placed removed carpets under mulch on garden paths; the sink was turned into an outdoor birdbath.
In another rural area in the Los Padres National Forest, north of Ojai, the Dreamcatcher Animal Sanctuary is using Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace to innovatively reuse items that have entered their second recycling cycle. A long time ago, a truck with a large piece of glass crashed on the Maricopa Freeway.
All of the cargo was to be disposed of along with the wreckage, but instead, the three remaining intact panes of glass were saved and installed as windows in a nearby cabin on what is now known as the Dreamcatcher Ranch. It is now owned by actress Lola DeVonna Lapteva, who starred in the series Wives of the Badlands.
She turned it into an animal shelter, providing a “perpetual home” for a variety of animals, a rehabilitation program for veterans with PTSD, and a treatment program for children with autism.
Last year, Lapteva demolished cabins and other unauthorized structures to bring the ranch into compliance with Ventura County bylaws.
Instead of dealing with construction debris, she complies with the county’s disposal requirements, documenting impressive reuse efforts. Listing material on the Internet as “free for a good home,” she met a man who was building a cabin in Ojai, who carefully removed the cabin’s windows to reuse them in his home.
She also separated, sorted, and sold demolished lumber to neighbors for reuse and firewood; handed out single windows to greenhouse builders; I gave it to a neighbor who used it to finish the sidewalk.
At the other end of the county, just off East Gibson Road near Fillmore, Alan King has hosted some spectacular reuses at his century-old King and King Ranch.
“As a third-generation farmer, I have a lot of reuse experience, and as a fourth-generation farmer’s father, I care about resource conservation,” he said.
“We store good parts in separate containers for pine, oak and treated wood,” he says. For plinth we use treated wood. ”
During a rainstorm last year, the King family found a way to reuse large, heavy plastic wrap.
“We had just dug the trenches when it started to rain,” Kim said. “We quickly built a shelter over the trench and used the plastic as a tarp to keep the rain from making things worse.”
For those of us who live in urban areas, two ReStore Habitat for Humanity in Ventura County make repurposing easier. ReStores sells donated leftovers and used household items. These stores sell furniture, hardware, tools, lumber and drywall, doors, windows, flooring, lighting, and other items over 4 feet long.
Proceeds from non-profit ReStores in Oxnard and Simi Valley benefit Habitat for Humanity, which brings together volunteers and mobilizes resources to work with those in need to build and restore simple, dignified housing.
Eco-Tip was written by David Goldstein, Environmental Resources Analyst for the Ventura County Department of Public Works. He can be contacted at 658-4312 or email david.goldstein@ventura.org.


Post time: Mar-30-2023