Virtually all small-scale development activities—including aspects of housing, sanitation, water supply, roads, schools, community centers, storage silos healthcare, energy—involve construction. This sector briefing is intended for these types of activities and any similar small-scale construction. Construction is one or more of a set of diverse activities: demolition; site-clearing; grading, leveling, and compacting soil; excavating; laying pipe; installing equipment; and erecting structures. The development benefits of construction come not from the construction itself, but from the buildings and infrastructure that are its result.
The details of the construction carried out in support of any particular development activity or site will have a number of specific characteristics. Construction activities in general, however, share a set of common features and potential adverse environmental impacts. The sector briefing addresses a number of these common elements.
Resources
IDENTIFYING AND MANAGING ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS IN CONSTRUCTION
- Additional Resources: Building Construction: Tools for the Identification of Environmental Effects Appropriate Mitigation Measures, and Guidelines for Specific Sectors of Activity (2007), Environmental Handbook for Community Development Initiatives. Canadian International Development Agency. http://www.acdi-cida.gc.ca/acdi-cida/acdi-cida.nsf/eng/EMA-218123618-NNH
- Center for International Forestry Research. Degraded Forest Land (definition). 2003. http://www.cifor.org/rehab/_ref/glossary/Degraded_Forest_Land.htm
- Tsunokawa, Koji and Christopher Hoban (Eds.) (1997) Roads and the Environment: A Handbook. Wold Bank Technical Paper No. 376. World Bank, Washington, D.C. http://www.worldbank.org/transport/publicat/reh/toc.htm
- USAID. ENCAP Visual Field Guide: Construction: For quick identification of serious environmental & occupational health and safety concerns in small-scale construction. December 2011.
- Lead paint test kits. US EPA maintains a webpage dedicated to EPA-recognized lead paint test kits: http://www.epa.gov/lead/pubs/testkit.htm.
Lead-safe renovation hazards and practices:
- US Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA), 2010. The Lead-Safe Certified Guide to Renovate Right: Important lead hazard information for families, child care provider,s and schools. EPA-740-K-10-001. April. Available at www.epa.gov/lead/pubs/renovaterightbrochure.pdf.
Explains the lead hazards posed by renovation & the basics of lead-safe work practices.
- US Department of Housing and Urban Development, 2001. Lead Paint Safety: a Field Guide for Painting, Home Maintenance, and Renovation Work. HUD-1779-LHC. March. Available at: www.hud.gov/offices/lead/training/LBPguide.pdf
More detailed guidance on lead-safe practices in a number of common renovation situations.
- US EPA. Lead-Safe Renovation, Repair and Painting. http://www.epa.gov/lead/pubs/renovation.htm. Accessed 11 April 2011.
General resource page on lead-safe practices and lead hazards in renovation work.
Leaded paint in developing countries.
- International POPs Elimination Network, 2012. Global Lead Paint Elimination by 2020: A Test of the Effectiveness of the Strategic Approach to International Chemicals Management. Available at http://ipen.org/iccm3/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/IPEN-Global-Lead-Paint-Elimination-Report-2012.pdf
- Clark et al, 2009. “Lead levels in new enamel household paints from Asia, Africa and South America” in Environmental Research (109 ) 930–936. Available at http://www.eh.uc.edu/news/pdfs/7-7-09-clark.pdf.
Documents high levels of lead in many new enamel paints manufactured in Asia, Africa and Latin America. Contains an extensive bibliography on the issue of lead-based paint in developing areas.
- Adebamowo,EO et al, 2007. “Lead content of dried films of domestic paint currently sold in Nigeria” in Science of the Total Environment (388) 116–120. Available at http://www.eh.uc.edu/news/pdfs/7-19-07-clark.pdf
- Mathee et al, 2007. “Lead in Paint: Three Decades Later and Still a Hazard for African Children?” in Environmental Health Perspectives. March; 115(3): 321–322. Available at http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1849931/
- Nduka JKC et al, 2008. “Lead levels in paint flakes from buildings in Nigeria: a preliminary study” in Toxicology and Industrial Health. September. 24(8) 539-542. Available at http://tih.sagepub.com/content/24/8/539.abstract
- University of Cincinnati, 2007. "Lead-based Paint Problem Isn't Isolated To China, Study Shows." ScienceDaily 2 Oct. Accessed 12 Apr. 2011. Available at www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/09/070927113155.htm
Asbestos renovation hazards and good practices
- US EPA Asbestos Home page, www.epa.gov/asbestos
- Health and Safety Executive, Government of the United Kingdom, 2007. “A14: Removing asbestos cement (AC) sheets, gutters, etc and dismantling a small AC structure” (Factsheet, “asbestos essentials” series. December. www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/guidance/a14.pdf
Explains the basic principles of small-scale roofing and structural renovation involving asbestos cement sheets. Other factsheets in the series (referenced on this sheet) may also be of interest.
- US Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). “Work practices and engineering controls for Class I Asbestos Operations.” www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owadisp.show_document?p_table=STANDARDS&p_id=10868
In the US, Class I asbestos work refers to removal of asbestos-containing thermal insulation. Class II refers to roofing, wall, ceiling and flooring materials. This regulatory guidance shows the work practices that achieve compliance with US occupational health and safety regulations.
- US Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, 2007. Case Studies in Environmental Medicine (CSEM): Asbestos Toxicity. http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/csem/asbestos/index2.html. April.
An on-line learning course oriented towards medical treatment, but has a set of useful, more general sections on asbestos hazards and risk management.
Asbestos in developing countries.
- Joshi, T. K., and R. K. Gupta, 2004. Asbestos in Developing Countries: Magnitude of Risk and Its Practical Implications. International Journal of Occupational Medicine and Environmental Health 17(1). http://www.imp.lodz.pl/upload/oficyna/artykuly/pdf/full/Jos22-01-04.pdf
- Cindy Dilys Maade Asamoah, 3 Sept 2010. “Ghana Sits on Asbestos Time Bomb.” AllAfrica. http://allafrica.com/stories/201009030773.html.
- Abraham Rumanzi, 21 Oct 2009 “Rwanda: Asbestos Roofs Banned Because They Are a Health Hazard.” AllAfrica. http://allafrica.com/stories/200910221043.html
- SouthAfrica.info. 28 March 2008. “South Africa bans all use of asbestos.” http://www.southafrica.info/services/health/asbestos-280308.htm
Document disponible en Français
- Manuel en environnement - Ressources complémentaires — Construction de bâtiments. Outils pour l'identification des effets environnementaux de secteurs d'activités spécifiques, des mesures d'atténuation appropriées et lignes directrices ACDI 2007. http://www.acdi-cida.gc.ca/acdi-cida/acdi-cida.nsf/fra/EMA-218123618-NNH
- Directives environnementales, sanitaires et sécuritaires pour l'extraction des materiaux de construction. Société financière internationale Abril 2007. http://www1.ifc.org/wps/wcm/connect/4293a78048855367aee4fe6a6515bb18/001_Construction%2BMaterials%2BExtraction.pdf?MOD
=AJPERES&CACHEID=4293a78048855367aee4fe6a6515bb18
Documentos disponibles en español
- Guías sobre medio ambiente salud y seguridad para la extracción de materiales de construcción. Corporacion financiera internacional Abril 2007. http://www1.ifc.org/wps/wcm/connect/67c9d5004886597fb966fb6a6515bb18/0000199659ESes_Construction_Materials_Extraction%2Br
ev%2Bcc.pdf?MOD=AJPERES&CACHEID=67c9d5004886597fb966fb6a6515bb18
- Guía de manejo de escombros y otros residuos de la construcción. Oficina Regional para Mesoamérica y el Caribe 2011. http://cmsdata.iucn.org/downloads/guia_escombros_baja.pdf
- Guia de manejo ambiental para el sector de la construcción normas ambiente para el sector de construcción, Alcaldía mayor de Bogotá 2010. http://www.maat.com.co/documentos/Guia_de_Manejo_Ambiental.pdf
- Manual de gestion socio ambiental para obras de construcción Medellín Colombia 2009. http://www.areadigital.
OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH IN CONSTRUCTION: STANDARDS
- International Finance Corporation., 2007. IFC Environmental, Health and Safety Guidelines: 2.0 Occupational Health and Safety and 4.0 Constructions and Decommissioning. www.ifc.org/ifcext/enviro.nsf/Content/EnvironmentalGuidelines.
- International Labour Organization, 1995. Safety, Health and Welfare on Construction Sites - A Training Manual. http://www.ilo.org/safework/info/instr/lang--en/docName--WCMS_110237/index.htm
- International Labour Office, 1992. Safety and Health in Construction: an ILO Code of Practice. ISBN 92-2-107104-9. Geneva.
- Also see other resources produced by the ILO’s SafeWork program: http://www.ilo.org/safework/lang--en/index.htm
- United States Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). OSHA Pocket Guide: Worker Safety Series – Construction. http://www.osha.gov/Publications/osha3252.pdf
Pocket guide to the most common health and safety hazards at US construction sites and the basic requirements of US standards in each case.
- Also see OSHA’s Construction Industry Home Page. http://www.osha.gov/doc/index.html. Single point of access to all US federal occupational safety and health standards for construction and a number of related training materials.
OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH IN CONSTRUCTION: CHALLENGES AND BARRIERS
- Kheni et al., 2008. “Institutional and Economic Challenges to Health and Safety Management Within SMEs in Developing Countries: A Case Study of Ghana” in Conference Proceedings: Evolution of and Directions in Construction Safety and Health (Hinze et al, eds.) International Council for Research and Innovation in Building and Construction (CIB). March. Available at: http://www.irbdirekt.de/daten/iconda/CIB10336.pdf
- Kheni et al, 2008. Health and Safety Management in Developing Countries: A Study of Construction SMEs in Ghana” in Construction Management and Economics. 26 (11) pp 1159–1169. https://dspace.lboro.ac.uk/dspace-jspui/handle/2134/5942
Documents the barriers to occupational safety and health good practice and compliance, including fragmented government responsibility, poor construction firm capacity, and lack of responsible contracting practice. Also contains a useful biography for construction health and safety issues in developing countries.
RESPONSIBLE CONSTRUCTION CONTRACTING
- Wells, J and J Hawkins. Promoting Construction Health and Safety through Procurement: a briefing note for developing countries. Engineers Against Poverty; Institution of Civil Engineers, 2009. London. www.engineersagainstpoverty.org/_db/_documents/EAP-ICE_HS_Briefing_Note.pdf
See the above website for description and outputs of the Engineers against Poverty “Health and Safety in Construction” initiative.
CLIMATE CHANGE
Note: USAID's Global Climate Change (GCC) Office can provide support on the climate change aspects of this Guideline. To contact the GCC office, please email: climatechange@usaid.gov
- USAID. 2007. Adapting to Climate Variability and Change: A Guidance Manual for Development Planning. http://pdf.usaid.gov/pdf_docs/PNADJ990.pdf
- USAID. 2009. Adapting to Coastal Climate Change: A Guidebook for Development Planners. http://pdf.usaid.gov/pdf_docs/PNADO614.pdf
The guidances provide information to assist planners and stakeholders as they cope with a changing climate throughout the project cycle.
- AGC of America. 2009. Climate Change and the Construction Industry. http://www.agc.org/galleries/advy/ClimateChangeandConstruction.pdf
- U.S. Green Building Council. http://www.usgbc.org/
- Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED). https://www.leedonline.com/irj/servlet/prt/portal/prtroot/com.sap.portal.navigation.portallauncher.anonymous
- International Association for Impact Assessment (IAIA). FasTips #3. February 2013. Climate Smart Decisions. http://www.iaia.org/publicdocuments/special-publications/fast-tips/Fastips_3%20Climate%20Smart%20Decisions.pdf
- National Institute of Building Sciences. Whole Building Design Guide. 2013. Passive Solar Heating. http://www.wbdg.org/resources/psheating.php