VEHA
Guidance
Guidance
Virtual Environmental and Humanitarian Adviser Tool – (VEHA Tool) is a tool
to easily integrate environmental considerations in humanitarian response. Field Implementation guidances are useful for the design and execution of humanitarian activities in the field.
Construction and crisis waste should be assessed, separated, and re-used wherever safe to do so. Any remaining waste should be disposed of safely to minimise environmental impacts.
Wood, earth bricks, and other natural resources are often used in shelter and settlements works, and those resources are often depleted or not available close to areas where they are needed. Factors such as soil erosion, deforestation, water depletion diminish these resources. Poorly managed extraction processes can also pollute the air, water, and soil and cause temporary or permanent damage to ecosystems, flora, and fauna.
In addition, poorly managed construction processes can lead to the release of toxic materials, present in the soil or water, into shelters and settlements. Those toxic elements are may be present from previous human polluting activities (pesticides from agriculture, petroleum products, radon, asbestos, lead, chromate copper arsenate, and creosote).
Vulnerable people, who are often excluded, should be consulted regarding their needs and capacities, and given choice in waste management options.
Air pollution
Soil pollution
Water pollution
Deforestation
Desertification
Loss of biodiversity and ecosystems
Natural resource depletion
Soil erosion
Noise pollution
Impact on mental health
Storms/hurricanes
Drought / flood
1. Improper disposal and management of waste such as debris can generate air, soil and water contamination, including materials with the potential for causing harm to humans and the environment
2. Poorly managed construction waste causes hazards to humans, flora, and fauna
3. Contaminants pose risks to the health of humans, flora, and fauna e.g. asbestos
4. Unmanaged construction waste can be a host for disease vectors.
1. The safe and environmentally sound management, re-use, recycling, and disposal of solid waste reduces negative environmental impacts and promotes good health conditions. Waste such as crisis debris and demolished materials are a threat to health, safety, and the environment. Environmental impacts, which are closely associated with human impacts, can include blocking or polluting watercourse, surface water and groundwater, air, soil, agricultural areas, and exposing communities to dangerous chemicals and heavy metals. If debris is removed and dumped in an uncontrolled way, this will displace the impacts and may create breeding grounds for new disease vectors.
2. Poorly managed construction waste can pose physical and chemical hazards to humans and the natural environment. It can also be a host for disease vectors.
3. There are elements that pose a risk for human and environmental health, for example, all forms of asbestos are classified as known human carcinogens, the safe use of asbestos does not exist and there is no known acceptable safe exposure limit. Existing asbestos products that are broken and damaged during a disaster pose a major health threat.
4. Unmanaged construction waste can pose physical and chemical hazards to humans and the natural environment. It can also be a host for disease vectors.
1a. Written agreements with community groups to reduce environmental harm
1b. Community awareness-raising on environmental impacts of natural resource extraction
1c. Community mapping of crisis waste and natural resources
1d. Prioritise the use of local materials when this is proven to be sustainable
2a. Community awareness in how poor practice extraction methods pollute the air, soil, and water and affect the health of flora, fauna, and humans
2b. Support communities in communal procurement, sustainable local extraction, and non-polluting construction methods
2c. Plan environmental remediation. Prioritize materials that are recycled or recyclable.
3a. Train community members in materials quality assessment, and in assessing local sustainable alternatives
3b. Consult community members regarding acceptable construction materials and construction methods
3c. Support the community by providing effective insulation, natural ventilation, and cooling and lighting to conserve energy, appropriate to the local climate
4. Train community members in basic supply chain management to reduce environmental impacts
1a. Meet with, or establish community groups and make a written agreement with them regarding shelter reconstruction. This should include a process for individual householders to make a public commitment to collaborate, share resources, support each other and minimise harm to surrounding ecosystems
1b. Community awareness in the impacts of unsustainable natural resource extraction on flora, fauna and ultimately on the community and family resilience
1c. Support community groups in mapping and assessing crisis waste and natural resources and agreeing on what resources can be sustainably used for reconstruction, and which will need sustainably sourcing from elsewhere
1d. Local materials should be used in preference to imported materials when they can be sourced sustainably in sufficient quantities and at appropriate costs. Local procurement reduces the environmental impacts associated with the supply chain. Sustainable practices or material sourcing should form part of the procurement selection criteria, with contract clauses for selected suppliers. Support communities in prioritising suppliers/producers who engage in environmentally sustainable and ethical practices and can demonstrate that they are not contributing to significant conversion or degradation of natural or critical habitats
2a. Community awareness in how poor practice extraction methods pollute the air, soil, and water and affect the health of flora, fauna, and humans
2b. Support communities in communal procurement, or joint sustainable local extraction, and sustainable non-polluting construction methods
2c. Plan for environmental remediation before, during, and after material extraction. Plan to use minimum resources with maximum efficiency. Seek to identify and maximize the use of materials that do not create harmful emissions, and ideally, that are recycled, recyclable, sustainable materials; they should also be easy to manufacture and construct, as well as light in weight for transport.
3a. Train identified community members in materials quality assessment, and in assessing the quality of alternative locally available materials, particularly renewable resources such as bamboo. Ensure a good understanding of the building properties in their local context (for example, if an agency decides to utilize bamboo, it must not only know how best to use the bamboo structurally but the proper time to cut it; how to recognize whether it has been cured properly; how to treat it for different climatic conditions; and what materials to use with it, etc.)
3b. Consult community members regarding appropriate and acceptable construction materials, including traditional materials and indigenous designs that may have a lower impact on the environment
3c. Assess the local climate and support the community in understanding existing or adopting new methods of providing effective insulation, natural ventilation, and cooling, and lighting to conserve energy – e.g. processing plastic waste to create insulation in floors, roofs, and walls
4. Train community members in understanding construction material extraction, processing, production, and transportation impacts and how to mitigate them appropriately. Coordinate with other agencies to reduce peaks in material demand. This will reduce the likelihood of illegal and harmful extraction to meet demand.
CASE STUDY: Kosovo, asbestos management in 2000
Following the cessation of hostilities in 2000, reconstruction efforts in Kosovo began with the clearance of damaged buildings and infrastructure. Demolition work included numerous industrial and private buildings which contained asbestos in both the roofing sheets as well as lagging for pipe insulation.
As part of its demolition support to Kosovo, the Danish funded WDR (Waste Demolition Recycling) team established an asbestos removal team which included:
– six Kosovar asbestos operatives trained specifically in asbestos removal;
– the necessary Personal Protective Equipment for use in asbestos removal;
‘- the necessary asbestos removal equipment such as containers, a generator-powered air pump for creating negative air pressure in the sealed working area, as well as tenting material to create a safe working area;
– a specially designed welfare container with showers and a decontamination zone for the personnel to use on-site.
The asbestos removal team supported various international NGOs, the UN, and local authorities in the safe removal of the asbestos which was then disposed of at designated landfill cells in Kosovo.
From: https://www.sheltercluster.org/sites/default/files/docs/3.3.16.asbestos_in_emergencies.pdf
Construction waste is correctly assessed and managed following environmental guidelines
Mitigation of environmental damage
Field and desktop research to understand and classify the waste streams