Watershed Materials is a California-based company that has developed an incredibly sustainable method of recycling waste from excavation sites.
In real estate, projects that involve excavation are an environmental nightmare, requiring trucks to expend gas transporting the waste materials from digs to dump sites that are themselves ecologically suspect at best. Watershed Materials has developed a new system that can be set up on site at any excavation to turn the waste from the development into concrete masonry units that can be put directly back into the project.
The pop-up plant uses extremely high pressure to compress loose soil into the sustainable bricks, mimicking the geological process of lithification that takes millions of years in nature. The technology is currently being used on the Kirkham Project, an urban development comprising 445 housing units in San Francisco.
Pop-Up Waste Recycling Plants
Watershed Materials Recycles Waste from Real Estate Excavation
Trend Themes
1. On-site Waste Recycling - Watershed Materials' pop-up waste recycling plants allow for on-site recycling of excavation waste, disrupting the traditional waste transportation and disposal process.
2. Sustainable Construction Materials - Watershed Materials' system of turning excavation waste into concrete masonry units provides an innovative and sustainable solution for the construction industry.
3. Geological Mimicking Technology - Watershed Materials' use of extremely high pressure to compress loose soil into bricks mimics the natural geological process and presents opportunities for disruptive innovation in industries that rely on geological processes.
Industry Implications
1. Real Estate Development - Watershed Materials' pop-up waste recycling plants present revolutionary environmental solutions to real estate projects that involve excavation.
2. Waste Management and Recycling - Watershed Materials' on-site waste recycling technology presents new opportunities for the waste management and recycling industry to improve their sustainability practices.
3. Geological Engineering - Watershed Materials' technology presents opportunities for disruptive innovation in geological engineering by mimicking natural geological processes in compressed soil and sustainable brick production.