Light House, an organization focused on advancing circular practices in the built environment, and their聽Construction Plastics Initiative, which launched in 2024 to capture, divert and upcycle plastic waste from Metro Vancouver construction sites, announced two new construction project partners 鈥� the Freedom Mobile Arch in Vancouver, with general contractor EllisDon Corporation, and the Steveston Community Centre in Richmond, with general contractor Scott Construction. All plastic waste collected from projects involved in the Construction Plastics Initiative are processed by Langley Plastics into a reusable plastic pellet, which is then integrated into the manufacturing of a range of new building products.听
鈥淔or all construction projects involved in our Construction Plastics Initiative, all plastics that arrive on site are kept separate from other construction materials and then sent to a plastics processor where they are extruded into a plastic pellet,鈥� Gil Yaron, Managing Director, Circular Innovation, Light House. 鈥淭he pellet is then sold to a Plascon Plastics who blends the pellets in with other resins to manufacture innovative building products like InfinaNet by Infina Technologies Inc.鈥�
InfinaNet is a proprietary concrete void system that displaces concrete聽 in multi-unit residential slab floors, reducing the amount of concrete required. This innovation not only lightens floor weight, but also minimizes the need for large load-bearing supports, optimizing material use. By incorporating repurposed construction plastics, InfinaNet also decreases the need for virgin plastic in its product, aligning with the principles of a circular economy; turning waste plastic into a valuable resource.
The Construction Plastics Initiative not only helps contractors reduce material use and embodied carbon, but it also prepares participating contractors for the federal government’s upcoming plastics registry reporting requirements in 2026. “Partnering with the Construction Plastics Initiative on our Freedom Mobile Arch project is just one way we鈥檙e ensuring that sustainable practices persist at the heart of both our core values as well as the venue’s redevelopment,鈥� said Daniel Molnar, BC Regional Environmental Manager with EllisDon. 鈥淎fter products – for instance here, much of the wood for the timber arch, are manufactured, they鈥檙e typically wrapped in protective plastic packaging before delivery to the construction site, and that plastic wrap then ends up in landfills. Through the support of this initiative, we鈥檙e able to shake up that process, and strive to demonstrate the feasibility of circular economics in the construction environment, to help make positive changes in the ways we build, moving forward.鈥�
“Once completed, the Freedom Mobile Arch will become a world-class venue, hosting our Summer Night Concerts as well as a wide range of local, national, and international music, arts, and cultural events,” says Ming Tian, Vice President of Facilities, Maintenance, and Master Planning, PNE. “Our goal is to ensure that this iconic venue is enjoyed for generations to come, bringing together hundreds of thousands of guests annually.鈥�
Scott Construction has joined the initiative with their Steveston Community Centre and Library project in Richmond. 鈥淭his is an initiative we鈥檙e proud to participate in, especially because it allows us to bring sustainable building practices to the forefront,鈥� said Trenton Berger, Project Director, Scott Construction. 鈥淭hrough our partnership with the Construction Plastics Initiative, we鈥檙e ensuring that we鈥檙e聽diverting and upcycling plastic construction waste that is generated in the development of the Steveston Community Centre,聽helping to reduce, divert and upcycle plastic in construction. This is an important step in responsible construction practices, where keeping materials recirculating in the economy聽 is integral to how we build.鈥�
Construction for the 60,350 sq. ft. Stevenston Community Centre and Library project are underway, with completion聽expected in 2026. In their聽聽Circular City Strategy, the City of Richmond has also praised circular economy approaches, 鈥渂y using circular business models and collaborative partnerships, buildings in Richmond can be more sustainable by implementing innovative products and technologies to enable maximum material re-use and longer building life and keep materials at their highest intrinsic value. Implementing appropriate instruments to monitor the City鈥檚 material flow, embodied carbon and the resource footprint of buildings and infrastructure can ensure resource efficiency throughout the construction lifecycle. The transition to a circular economy will involve innovative strategies that enable both current and new buildings to be used flexibly and perform more efficiently. Using circular principles in the design, operation, and maintenance of built assets can allow for higher adaptability, use of renewable, recycled materials, and thorough deconstruction at the end of its useful life. Such thinking can be seen as a natural extension of the holistic approaches already applied by architects, engineers and planners.鈥�