Reduce, reuse, recycle! At RAF Coltishall this strategy will underpin the attitude to waste across the lifecycle of development. The government is pushing for greater awareness and responsibility by developers, businesses and householders and as land fill sites in the Anglia region are predicted to be full within 5 years it is imperative that we find innovative ways of reducing the amount of waste produced sent to landfill sites. At RAF Coltishall construction waste, household and business waste will all be subject to sustainable policies. Recycling targets will be set and closely monitored.

Land form strategy

The aim of the land form strategy is to balance cut and fill within the site. Wherever possible, cut and fill will be balanced locally within any given development area. The larger volumes of material generated by the creation of areas of open water will be used to create rammed earth structures to provide interest in the landscape or spread across the urban village to provide gentles slopes for SUDs and swales. At the site edges, and where it is desirable to retain trees and hedgerows, (marked 'neutral' on the diagram), there will be no overall change in levels in order to preserve the vegetation.

It is not possible at this stage to measure the precise volume of cut as this will depend on the detailed design. Likewise, the distribution of fill will be affected by soil types and compaction.

Construction waste

There are many buildings at RAF Coltishall which are unsuitable for conversion or retention but this does not mean they will go to waste. Construction materials such as bricks, tiles and concrete can all be reused in new buildings. Areas of hardstanding such as the runway can also be reused in construction of new roads and buildings. Prefabrication of building elements can also help to reduce the amount of on-site waste produced.
Use materials and techniques which reduce construction waste, both on site and in manufacture of building components.
Consider adopting the BRE Construction Waste Management Schemes "SMARTStart™" and "SMARTAudit™" to assess, audit and minimise site generated waste.

Household waste

The average UK household produces about one tonne of rubbish per annum, amounting to approximately 27 million tonnes for the UK each year. The amount of rubbish we throw away is increasing partly because our population is increasing, but also because of lifestyle changes: increasing affluence leads to greater consumption and increasing pressures on personal time means more reliance on heavily packaged convenience foods. Packaging waste makes up about a quarter of all household waste, most of which could be recycled.
At RAF Coltishall responsible environmental stewardship will be expected: houses will be designed to make it easy to separate and store recyclable waste and we aim for a weekly kerbside collection. Composting will also be encouraged - a community compost initiative could encourage even the most reluctant gardener to make the most of their organic rubbish. Householder information packs will include guidance on recycling and composting.

Building-in-use waste

• Provide means for individual occupants to segregate and recycle consumer waste
• Provide on-site recycling facilities such as Euro-bins for glass, paper/cardboard, plastics, metals and clothing
• Develop a segregated waste collection strategy with the Local Authority
• Provide the means to collect green waste separately to be composted on site - possibly for use on the allotments.

Effluent

• Reduce building foul water discharges
• Avoid mixing surface water with foul water
• Use SUDS for surface water handling to avoid the exporting of surface water for treatment off site

Environmental Management

An Environmental Management System will be designed for the whole RAF Coltishall development which will govern environmental issues throughout the life-cycle of the development through the design, construction and operational phases. We suggest that each phase be managed by a series of area specific procedures grouped together under three plans; a Design Management Plan, a Construction Management Plan and a Development Stewardship Plan. The procedures included in these will be used to implement the sustainability and environmental design objectives previously discussed.