Environmental Impact of Construction

Running head: ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT OF CONSTRUCTION
Environmental Impact of Construction
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1ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT OF CONSTRUCTION
Introduction- Environmental impact is a fundamental issue and it generally indicates the
issues that emanate from any activity that has the potential of affecting the environment.
Environmental impact due to the construction industry, pollution occurring from usage of energy
and material, and the impact of the pollution on the living being like the fauna and flora gets
highlighted (Fewings2013).
Impact of construction on environment- It is important to note that the climate change
scientists have propounded that the earth is getting warmer day by day and human activity has
played a major role in accelerating the entire process. The vital fact is that the construction
industries contribute to the global emission of greenhouse gases, especially carbon dioxide. It has
been seen that the construction project plays a major role in the emission of methane and carbon
dioxide along with it waste products are generated that pollutes the air (Kuo and Lu 2013). One
of the most harmful aspects of construction industry is that it employs the huge and heavy
machines for the purpose of raw material extraction in the mining projects. In overall emission of
the global carbon dioxide, cement industry contributes about 5 percent (Taylan et al. 2014). Also,
the applications of electricity and fuel in the construction industry has contributed majorly to the
global carbon emission. Fossil fuel is generally used to transport as well as extract minerals so
that the materials can be processed. Fossil fuels are also used to power the several tools that are
used at the construction sites (Taylan et al. 2014).
The construction projects impact the environment by significantly affecting the nature
and the local environment. At the construction sites, the sources of pollution which include the
toxic chemicals, solvents, paints and fossil fuels. It is also important to highlight that minor spill
of chemicals leads to the leaching of the chemicals into the waterways and the ground (Huang et
al. 2013). This is turn harms the aquatic life, toxifies water sources. Even the condition of