Research trends in construction and demolition waste management in Australia

Construction and demolition (C&D) waste generation has adverse impacts on the environment. Researchers have identified different methods to improve waste management practices, but waste generation still continues. It is necessary to identify the current trends in waste management to provide better solutions for waste generation. This research aims to provide a holistic understanding of the studies on Australian C&D waste management in the last two decades. For achieving this, trends and directions of Australian C&D waste management from January 1998 to June 2018 were systematically analysed in the research by using diagrams and tables. A total of 24 journal articles focusing on Australian C&D waste management were retrieved from seven international peer-reviewed journals. A framework, integrating with this research’s findings, was developed to recommend future research directions for Australian C&D waste management. This framework suggests to find the most suitable waste management approaches by integrating technical and human aspects in waste management practices, consider the lifecycle of construction projects in C&D waste management by involving the circular economy concept and managing all relevant stakeholders in waste management practices. Thus, this study can serve as a guide for practitioners and researchers to provide better solutions in Australian C&D waste management.