Port of Los Angeles, Recovering Construction and Demolition Materials
The Port of Los Angeles is managed by the City of Los Angeles Harbor Department (LAHD). LAHD prepared a Zero Waste Plan in response to the City's 2019 Green New Deal and Mayor's Executive Directive No. 25 (LAHD, 2025). The City has set landfill diversion targets of 90 percent by 2025, 95 percent by 2035 and 100 percent by 2050 (LAHD, n.d.). The plan counts waste from demolition of structures such as piers, roads and bridges as construction and demolition (C&D) waste. Most of the waste LAHD diverts from landfill is C&D waste, so its overall diversion rate depends on how much construction and capital work happens in a given year (LAHD, 2025).
Approach
Recycling written into every contract. All LAHD construction and capital projects require contractors to recycle C&D waste under City Council File 09-3029. Under the City's C&D Waste Ordinance, each project must reuse or recycle at least 80 percent of inert waste and 65 percent of the remaining C&D waste (LAHD, 2025).
Reporting tied to payment. Contractors must submit Solid Waste Diversion and Disposal (SWDD) reports with each pay request. LAHD updated its C&D waste management specifications to mirror those of the City's Bureau of Engineering (LAHD, 2025).
Crushing and reusing concrete and asphalt. Until its crusher site closed in 2023, LAHD recycled asphalt and concrete and reused them as crushed base in other development projects. LAHD also stockpiles excess clean soil from projects for later reuse (LAHD, 2025).
Metal recycling. LAHD contracts a vendor to recycle ferrous metals generated or collected by its Construction and Maintenance (C&M) Division (LAHD, 2025).
Results
In 2019 LAHD diverted 3,910 tons of C&D waste, including 3,523 tons of concrete and asphalt. Its C&M Division repurposed 387 tons of asphalt and concrete demolition debris as crushed material for other LAHD projects. LAHD's diversion rate including C&D rose from 63 percent in 2019 to 98 percent in 2020, then was 93 percent in 2021, 92 percent in 2022, 56 percent in 2023 and 71 percent in 2024. Excluding C&D, the rate stayed between 22 and 32 percent. These figures cover C&D waste from all construction and capital work, not only material from retired port assets. The plan lists upcoming demolition projects such as the Berth 208-209 CFS Building demolition (LAHD, 2025).
Transferability
DMC port authorities can write minimum recycling rates for demolition waste into construction contracts and link contractor waste reports to payment. Ports with space can crush concrete and asphalt from their own demolition work and reuse it as base material. Reporting diversion rates with and without C&D waste, as LAHD does, shows how much results depend on the project pipeline. Setting up a metal recycling contract gives a steady outlet for scrap from maintenance and decommissioning.
Sources
All information used for this case study was based on publicly available resources.