Deconstruction is the purposeful and careful disassembly of a building so as to salvage construction materials and property suitable for reuse. The mandatory deconstruction of buildings has been implemented in cities like Portland, Oregon mandating full deconstruction for houses built in 1916 or earlier or are designated historic. The drafted resolution outlines reasons for implementation including:
The Environmental Protection Agency created a valuable publication entitled “Design for Deconstruction.” The aim of this article is to add our observations of industry practice using the ample research produced and presented in their publication and others, especially with respect to the use of concrete in buildings. The publication presents startling statistics including:


