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Olympia Salvage: Giving Old Building Materials New Life

By Janine Bogar

Who is Olympia Salvage?
Olympia Salvage is a non-profit deconstruction business that also sells quality used building materials. Deconstruction is the systematic disassembly of a structure in order to maximize the reuse and recycling of the materials. Olympia Salvage provides skilled crews capable of safely disassembling any size structure, while preserving reusable materials.

How it Started
The construction and demolition industry is currently one of the leading contributors to local landfills. Olympia Salvage was started in 2004 by a dedicated group of people who wanted to keep reusable building materials out of the landfill, and saw a need for building deconstruction services in the Olympia area as a key way to accomplish the goal.

The business started with a few local deconstruction jobs and a small warehouse at the Port of Olympia for selling salvaged building materials. Partnerships with other building material reuse businesses in the northwest, sharing deconstruction jobs, and trading salvaged building materials for needed equipment helped Olympia Salvage grow.

The Tipping Point
In June of 2006, Olympia Salvage got a contract to deconstruct a group of World War Two era barracks at Fort Lewis (as subcontractors to MCS Environmental). The job involved deconstructing numerous buildings made with beautiful old-growth lumber, and led to an increase in staff and good local jobs. It also allowed Olympia Salvage staff to pioneer a new hybrid deconstruction process which involves the use of machinery to improve deconstruction efficiency. The buildings are actually tipped over by machines, allowing for safer and quicker deconstruction on the ground.

Work at Fort Lewis continues, as does deconstruction jobs on local houses and barns. Not only has Olympia Salvage staff successfully diverted thousands of tons of deconstruction debris from the landfill, they have also helped Fort Lewis win two awards for waste reduction and recycling.

The Fort Lewis project has helped Olympia Salvage blossom into a much larger organization even more effective at fulfilling their mission – and one in need of a larger retail location.

A New Home and a Grand Opening Celebration
This spring Olympia Salvage jumped at the opportunity to move from the small warehouse at the Port of Olympia to the old Hardel building at 415 Olympia Avenue. The new location is just around the corner from the old location, but is much larger and far more retail friendly. To go with the new store are expanded store hours: now open Wednesday through Sunday, 9 AM to 5 PM.

In honor of their new retail location, Olympia Salvage is having a Grand Opening Celebration June 16 and 17. Festivities will include live music, food and drinks, raffles and door prizes (including a real door!), as well as discounts on quality used building materials. All are welcome!

Call 360-705-1300, e-mail staff@olympiasalvage.org or go to http://www.olympiasalvage.org for more information

Environmental Benefits of Deconstruction and Building Material Reuse

  • Deconstruction of an average home (2000 sq.ft.) can divert 108 tons of material from the landfill when compared to demolition. The amount of lumber that can be salvaged from that same home is equal to 6000 board feet.
  • All building materials contain "embodied energy", which is a total of all the energy input incurred during the initial harvest, milling, manufacture, and transport of the material. By reusing materials, 95 percent of this energy can be saved. - Using salvaged material reduces the demand for virgin natural resources, as well as decreases the burden on our landfills. -}

    Other Benefits of Deconstruction and Building Material Reuse

    • Vintage items no longer available can be kept in use.
    • Reused building materials cost less than purchasing new materials.
    • Contributes to the local economy by providing low-cost materials for builders, remodelers, and artisans, and by providing local jobs.
    • Deconstruction clients are eligible for a tax-deductible receipt for the value of the salvaged material, due to Olympia Salvage’s non-profit status, in addition to savings on landfill disposal fees. -} Janine Bogar is a board member of Olympia Salvage. She has ten years experience working on waste reduction and recycling programs for Thurston County. She is currently employed as the Sustainability Coordinator for Washington State Department of Corrections.


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Updated 2015/01/07 21:14:22