It was estimated that in 2000, 16–34% of collected MSW in Thailand
had recyclable materials but only 7% (or 2,360 tons/day) was
actually recycled (Padungsirikul, 2003). This is very low when
compared with the recycling rates for C&D waste of other countries.
In Denmark the percentage of recycling is more than 80%.
Germany and The Netherlands, Finland, Ireland and Italy recycle
30–50%, while the recycling percentage in Luxembourg is 10%
(Brodersen et al., 2002). Even building rubble (including concrete,
brick, tile and asphalt), which is usually disposed of in open dumps
in Thailand, can be recycled. In Australia, building rubble is by far
the most recycled material. Calculations based on data from the
Australian Government Productivity Commission (2006) also
showed that in 2002–2003, approximately 50% of all recycled
waste in Australia was C&D waste. There are many available technologies
for recycling construction waste (Tam and Tam, 2006a).
These could prolong the life of landfill sites, minimize transport
needs and reduce the primary resource requirements (minerals
and energy). Although there are many material-recycling schemes
recommended by the government of Thailand, actual implementation
of waste recycling is limited to a few components of MSW
such as glass, plastic, paper and metals, which do not necessarily
originate from construction activities.