The season of giving and goodwill is upon us, and while most of us do our best to be kind and compassionate all year round, there’s something about the holiday season that encourages us to open our hearts a little more and lend a helping hand wherever we can. While volunteering and making donations are great ways to help, there are also other ways to give back. One way to help make the world a better place is to find small ways to go green and do your part to protect the environment.
At Mason & Associates, we do our best to help protect our environment, and while you may think that civil engineering in Idaho is the last place you’d expect to see green practices in place, you’d be mistaken. We’ve actually found a wide variety of ways to help our clients make choices that can reduce their impact on the planet we all share.
Repurposing previously developed sites
It’s not always necessary to use a new site for your building project. There are often previously developed sites that can be effectively repurposed to meet your needs. Repurposing previously developed sites helps the environment in two main ways:
- Less impervious area is created: Impervious area refers to areas of land that are covered with impervious materials, like concrete or asphalt. Reducing the amount of impervious area can help prevent environmental problems like storm water runoff and reduced groundwater recharge.
- Decreased land disturbance: The less new land we develop, the more we can reduce land disturbance and avoid problems like pollution, damaging soil ecosystems and destroying local vegetation and habitats.
Utilizing recycled materials
Today there are many materials used in the construction industry that can be recycled and reused. From concrete and asphalt to timber and metals, there are a wide variety of recycled materials that can be integrated into your civil engineering plans. Opting to use recycled materials not only reduces the demand for new resources and eliminates the need to send waste to landfills, but it also helps cut costs related to the production and transportation of new materials to your building site.
Incorporate natural features into your design
Mother Nature is something of an engineer herself, and sometimes her designs can be incorporated into your building project. Incorporating natural water features and local vegetation into your plans not only reduces your impact on the environment, but it can also save you money by reducing the amount of land development and materials needed for your building plans.
If you’re looking for unique and innovative ways to give back this year, let Mason & Associates help. With over 30 years of experience in civil engineering in Idaho, we’ve discovered numerous ways to help our clients create beautiful buildings and other civil engineering projects while still helping to protect the environment. To learn more about how we can help you go green on your next project, give us a call today. We hope you have a wonderful holiday season!