English 302-M43
How does adopting eco-friendly materials, methods, and design assist in reducing the effects of infrastructure projects in the United States?
The building and construction sector is one of the biggest consumers of natural resources and is the leading cause of environmental degradation. The nature and characteristics of this sector have significantly contributed to environmental hazards prompting researchers to delve into discussions on the need for the building and construction sector to commit to sustainability efforts. This widely accepted fact raised the pressure on building companies to minimize their ecological effects by utilizing renewable and recyclable materials in construction works to help reduce harmful waste generation and energy usage. Therefore, the research question for this proposal is, ‘How could adopting eco-friendly materials, methods, and design assist in reducing the effects of infrastructure projects in the United States?’
This proposal’s primary aim and objective are to look up various ways to lessen the industry’s environmental effects through green technologies, energy-efficient practices, and friendly construction methods. This industry is a significant garbage source and accounts for around 50 percent of the total globe’s raw material usage. Construction is distinctive because the sector can significantly lessen the impacts of climate change by eliminating outmoded practices. Many construction companies now recognize the significance of environmentally friendly and sustainable construction practices. Sustainability in building contributes to the welfare of people and communities in addition to the environment. Embracing the green concept in the construction industry has numerous known advantages.
Some scholars claim that new developments in technology, resources, and techniques have been created to improve and encourage overall effectiveness in response to the growing attention to the environment and energy saving. For instance, Khan et al. (2021) posit that adopting eco-friendly construction methods and techniques helps reduce construction projects’ impacts on the environment. Therefore, a need for the building and construction sector to embrace eco-design would result in more accountability, eco-consumerism, energy-intensive behavior, eco-growth, and the creation of SD-appropriate laws. Other scholars such as Singh (2018), advocate for Green construction where constructors should focus on using green construction materials during construction. According to Singh (2018), such a move helps address the issues of degradation and depletion of natural resources. Alongside this, this proposal will use Jiang et al. (2018) article to provide a review of eco-friendly functional materials where the authors look deeper into the performance, applications, and difficulties of six environmentally friendly operational road materials. These articles will particularly help in understanding the impacts of incorporating green construction materials in the building and construction sector to leverage issues of degradation and depletion of natural resources.
This proposal will delve deeper into what other scholars propose as the best strategies for promoting sustainability in the construction industry through the use of eco-friendly materials, techniques, and designs and how they help mitigate the negative consequences of current building practices. Utilizing sustainable materials in the building is among the most acceptable methods. More so, this study will be based on new generations of more robust, lighter, and sustainable construction materials, like insulated connectivity doors and paneling, made possible by technological developments. These materials may help push conventional methods toward becoming more environmentally friendly. These methods are more attractive and functional than their nonrenewable equivalents while serving the same function because they lower the environmental impact of the structures that use them while supporting a cleaner planet. A conclusion will also be made on how these materials, techniques, and designs can promote sustainability in the construction sector. By doing so, the proposal will be useful to all stakeholders in the construction sector, like engineers, developers, and real estate agencies. More so, construction agencies, the general public, and the government will benefit from insights in this paper.
APA Annotated Bibliography
Khan, N., Jhariya, M. K., Raj, A., Banerjee, A., & Meena, R. S. (2021). In Ecological intensification of natural resources for sustainable agriculture (pp. 565-595). Eco-designing for sustainability. Springer, Singapore.
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-33-4203-3
Main argument
The following study focuses on adopting eco-friendly construction methods and techniques to reduce the impacts of construction projects on the environment. The main argument in this article is that achieving sustainability via eco-design requires eco-labeling, green designing, green marketing, and green consumerism. According to the authors, embracing eco-design would result in more accountability, eco-consumerism, energy-intensive behavior, eco-growth, and the creation of SD-appropriate laws.
Support
The authors of this source support this claim by borrowing or drawing knowledge from previous scholarly findings regarding the need for green construction. They posit that eco-designing aid in reducing environmental impact, addressing economic and social sustainability issues, promoting sustainable management practices in many aspects of the economy, and preventing the effects of climate change. By lowering the carbon emissions of the structures that use them, these environmentally friendly materials also support a cleaner planet. They are more attractive and functional than their nonrenewable equivalents while serving the same function.
Contribution
This article will offer important information needed for the study, and the methods outlined in the paper will be considered in the research.
Strengths and limitations
The strength of this article is that it is arranged in order making it easier to follow. More so, written in 2018, it offers up-to-date information regarding the topic. It is also evidence-based because the authors draw from knowledge and support from other scholars. The limitation is that this article does not discuss the potential for using eco-design to improve the sustainability of agriculture in developing countries.
Differences
This paper differs from others as it provides the specific techniques that can be adopted in the sector by taking a more comprehensive and integrative approach to eco-designing for sustainability.
Singh, C. S. (2018). Green construction: analysis of green and sustainable building techniques. Civil Engineering Research Journal, 4(3), 555638.
https://juniperpublishers.com/cerj/CERJ.MS.ID.555638.php
Main argument
The main argument in the article is that green construction is a viable and sustainable building technique that more construction companies should adopt. The author cites several reasons green construction is a beneficial building technique, including its ability to save energy, reduce pollution, and improve the overall quality of buildings.
Support
The article draws from other scholarly findings to support its claims on why green infrastructure is useful in reducing the negative impacts of the building and construction sector on sustainability efforts. For instance, the article draws from findings that buildings have a significant adverse environmental impact since they use between forty percent and sixty-five percent of the garbage discarded in local landfills, consume over seventy percent of the power, and twelve percent of the drinkable water used in developed countries. The sustainable growth of a nation benefits from the choice of building materials with the lowest possible environmental impact. Therefore, green construction materials are an excellent strategy for achieving this goal.
Purpose
The study identifies the green building as a wise move toward achieving personal financial benefits and has beneficial environmental and social impacts that demonstrate our dedication to the present and our way of life for future years.
Contribution
The article is helpful for the study as it shows how green buildings can be used to reduce the negative impact of the construction sector. It also outlines the various adverse effects in the construction sector.
Strengths and limitations
The strength of this article is that it provides a comprehensive overview of green construction techniques and their benefits by discussing various elements of green construction, including energy efficiency, water conservation, and material recycling. More so, it talks about the importance of green construction in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and mitigating the effects of climate change. The limitation is that it does not discuss the cost of green construction techniques.
Differences
This article is more comprehensive and in-depth in discussing the benefits of green construction and provides a more detailed explanation of how green construction can be implemented in practice.
Kim, S. H., Choi, M. S., Ma, H. S., & Joung, J. Y. (2019). Environmental impact assessment and eco-friendly decision-making in civil structures. Journal of environmental management, 126, 105-112.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2013.03.045
Main argument
The authors argue that environmental impact assessment (EIA) is a valuable tool for making eco-friendly decisions in civil structures.
Support
The authors develop two practical methods for carrying out an environmental impact assessment is developed in this work. One is the advanced life-cycle assessment (LCA) method, which efficiently monitors the material flows and considers regeneration and civil infrastructure demolition. The second option is a green decision-making process, which might be helpful when choosing a civil building’s design. The life-cycle phases are suitably expanded to include the deconstruction and recycling operations. After the evaluation, the findings of the effect assessments for each of the elements are combined. The eco-friendly decision-making process helps designers to select an affordable and environmentally beneficial solution.
Purpose
This research aims to show that EIA can help decision-makers identify and assess the potential environmental impacts of proposed projects and consider alternatives that may be more environmentally friendly.
Contribution
Understanding the importance of EIA as a tool for making eco-friendly decisions in civil structures and that it should be used more often in decision-making processes builds up the thesis statement of this research.
Strengths and limitations
The strength is that the article is well-researched and provides a comprehensive overview of the topic because the authors used a variety of sources to support their arguments and presented their findings clearly and concisely. The limitation is that since the research was conducted in S. Korea, the findings cannot be generalized to other parts of the world, especially for costs associated with transitioning to green construction.
Difference
This article is comprehensive, well-researched, and evidence-based.
Jiang, W., Huang, Y., & Sha, A. (2018). A review of eco-friendly functional road materials. Construction and Building Materials, 191, 1082-1092. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2018.10.082
Main argument
The authors of this article believe that the current road materials are not eco-friendly and need to be improved because they are made from nonrenewable and non-biodegradable petroleum products hence the need to improve them to an eco-friendly state.
Support
The review accumulated substantial knowledge in current road development and related fields to support contemporary pavement engineering technology advancement.
Purpose
The authors in this study focused on the performance, applications, and difficulties of six environmentally friendly operational road materials. These materials included permeable asphalt concrete, low heat-absorbing pavement materials, noise-reducing pavement materials, de-icing pavement materials, exhaust gas-decomposing pavement materials, and energy-harvesting pavement materials. The author’s goal was to promote efficiency in materials engineering and concrete design concepts while linking to the most recent, previous research on the structuring, design, and construction of environmentally friendly operational pavement.
Contribution
This article contributes highly to this proposal by supporting the thesis statement and responding to the research question.
Strengths and limitations
This article is well-researched and comprehensively discusses the importance of eco-friendly construction. The authors also review the current state of eco-friendly functional road materials and their potential applications. The limitation is that it does not include all eco-friendly road constructions, does not discuss the potential drawbacks, and does not compare the performance of functional, eco-friendly roads.
Difference
This article is different from other scholarly articles because it provides a comprehensive overview of eco-friendly materials that can be used for road construction, and it evaluates the pros and cons of each type of material.
Raut, A. N., & Gomez, C. P. (2018). Development of thermally efficient fiber-based eco-friendly brick reusing locally available waste materials. Construction and Building Materials, 133, 275-284. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2016.12.055
Main argument
The authors argue that their brick is more thermally efficient than traditional bricks and, thus, more environmentally friendly.
Support
The authors of this article supported the main argument by investigating and drawing on findings from scholars, which showed that the thermal adequate prototype mix proportion, which uses lime-like glass powder, binder, fly ash, palm oil, and other materials, can give the stability of the brick. Additionally, using oil palm fibers helped reduce the heat capacity of bricks.
Purpose
The study focused on reducing reliance on non-ecofriendly insulators by creating thermally effective eco-friendly bricks. The sample brick made from sustainably sourced waste materials that were locally accessible underwent preliminary physical, mechanical, microscopic, and thermal testing. The study is critical as it offers a snapshot of how eco-friendly construction materials can be used to reduce the negative impacts witnessed in the construction industry.
Contribution
This article supports the thesis statement and builds on the argument regarding the need for eco-friendly constructions in the building and construction sector.
Strengths and limitations
The strength of this article is that it includes a detailed description of the manufacturing process and test results that show the thermal efficiency of the bricks. The limitation is that the authors only consider the thermal efficiency of the bricks and do not consider other properties such as strength or durability. Moreover, the study is limited to the use of locally available waste materials. It does not consider the use of other materials that could improve the thermal efficiency of the bricks.
Difference
This article is different from other scholarly articles because it discusses a specific topic that is not often discussed in other scholarly articles. The article also includes information on how bricks can be used to improve the thermal efficiency of buildings, which is another unique aspect of the field of research.
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