KPLU Local News
(2010-09-08)
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"Deconstruction" job training is coming to Seattle. Other areas of the country have programs in place. In this 2009 photo, a trainee in Saginaw, Michigan identifies pieces for salvage from a home that was to be taken down.
AP photo.
Deconstruction is an alternative to demolition. Instead of bringing in bulldozers to level a building, crews skilled in taking it apart come in and carefully salvage materials for resale.
"Basically what deconstruction is is construction in the reverse order. So, separating out the materials that are reusable and recyclable and then taking those materials and getting value out of the re-usable materials."
Megan Collum is with CleanEdison Incorporated - a New York company that's overseeing Seattle's program. She says trainees will learn not just the process of taking the buildings apart, but also how to package, ship and deliver the materials to recycling or resale centers. A growing number of such outfits has made deconstruction an affordable option. And it typically results in at least 70% diversion of waste from landfills. Collum says the training program is targeting jobless residents in areas of South Seattle that have been hardest hit by the downturn.
"And so you're bringing people from the very communities that are most impacted by the deconstruction activities and you're giving them jobs right within their own communities - and a lot of times on older housing projects and other things that they may have even at one time lived in."
The workforce development council of Seattle-King County is implementing the program using stimulus funds. It's part of a $3.6 million-dollar green jobs initiative called Greenlight. The first class of deconstruction workers starts September 20th.
For more information:
Green Job Training Programs from the Workforce Development Program of Seattle-King County
Re-Use Consulting
Building Materials Reuse Association
