 General framework |
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| Environmental protection and urban improvement aim at controlling the phenomenon of encroachment of vacant land, farmlands, disused quarries and natural open areas (sebkhats, forests, wadis, beaches…) and avoiding the rise of uncontrolled landfills of all types of waste (demolition, construction and garden waste). Despite initiatives of some urban districts to occasionally organize cleaning campaigns, these dumps keep re-emerging and have become ‘dark spots’ affecting city image and beauty. |
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 The proliferation of uncontrolled landfills is due to the following causes:  Increasing number of construction and restoration works as urban expansion continues ; Absence of sufficient organized landfills for such wastes ;Lack of control and careful monitoring of construction sites ;Ignorance of the features and negative impacts of such waste on the environment. |
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| Quantities and sources |
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| A pilot study on the management of demolition and construction waste in the areas of Greater Tunis, Sousse and Sfax was carried out in 2004. These are areas of continuous urban expansion with the accompanying increase in activities of construction and urbanization. The amounts of such waste in these areas are estimated as follows : Greater Tunis : around 820000 m3 ;Governorate of Sousse : around 125000 m3;Governorate of Sfax : around 120000 m3. |
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| Demolition and construction wastes are generated by construction and public works as follows : New housing (planning and achievement) Housing rehabilitationRemediationIndustrial activities Offices and other activitiesDemolition of old quartersConstruction of car parksWaste generated by the construction sites of new housing is of 45% ; waste by public works (sanitation and roads) is of 37%. |
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| Current management |
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| Absence of sufficient organized and reserved municipal landfills (provisional or final) ; |
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| Demolition and construction wastes are often dumped, with no prior separation of hazardous substances, in uncontrolled landfills (exceeding 82%) which are generally farmlands, bare sites, disused quarries or natural open areas such as sebkhats, forests, wadis, and beaches…; |
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| Absence of control and of careful monitoring of construction sites and absence of private transport companies ; |
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| Lack of resources devoted to the management of such wastes in urban districts, reducing their management to a few exceptional cleaning campaigns or to some activity as part of the national clean day of environmental conservation ; |
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| They are sometimes reused as backfill for swampy areas in the streets or for wadis and sebkhats with no prior study of environmental impacts especially if they are discharged in wetlands or high salinity areas and contain dangerous substances. |
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| Proposed system |
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 In the short termCollecting and sorting of inert waste, transfer of household waste to the landfill for use as roofing compounds or to the provisional or final authorized landfill of the urban district of the region. |
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| In the mid-term Establishing collection and separation facilities for such wastes and encouraging the private sector to their recycling and conversion; Incentives of the Ministry of Equipment notably for the reuse of recycled waste on its sites, and of public organizations in general to promote the recycling of these wastes. |
