BOSTON— The City of Boston has launched a new Building Material Reuse Study aimed at reducing demolition waste, lowering carbon emissions and supporting the city’s long-term sustainability goals.
The initiative, developed in partnership with Boston Building Resources, will analyze materials from buildings slated for demolition or major renovation to determine what can be salvaged and reused. City officials say the effort will also map the regional reuse ecosystem and generate data to inform future policies and construction practices.
Boston currently produces an estimated 640,000 tons of construction and demolition waste annually, much of which is transported to out-of-state landfills as far away as Alabama. Officials say the volume of discarded but potentially reusable material is equivalent to roughly 26,000 dump trucks each year.
Mayor Michelle Wu said the program reflects Boston’s broader push for innovation in climate policy and waste reduction.
“Reusing building materials can help grow our local workforce while building a more sustainable and resilient city,” Wu said.
Brian Swett, the city’s chief climate officer, emphasized the environmental and cultural benefits of reuse, noting that salvaging materials from older buildings can help preserve neighborhood character while reducing reliance on new, carbon-intensive construction materials.
Andrew Thompson, executive director of Boston Building Resources, said the organization has spent decades recovering and redistributing building materials through its reuse center and sees the study as a natural extension of that work.
Property owners with buildings scheduled for demolition or major renovation are invited to volunteer for the study. Participants will receive free technical assistance, including inventories of reusable materials and material management plans. They may also qualify for tax deductions if recovered materials are donated.
The city plans to collect data from more than 20 sites through the end of 2026, aiming to capture a representative sample of building types and construction projects. Findings will be used to develop tools, best practices and policy recommendations, with a final report expected in early 2027.
The study builds on Boston’s existing sustainability efforts, including its 2019 Zero Waste Plan, which targets a more than 70 percent reduction in trash disposal by 2035. It also aligns with the city’s recently released 2030 Climate Action Plan, which identifies building material reuse as a key strategy for cutting emissions.
City officials say the combined efforts are designed to help Boston reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 50 percent by 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.
