On-site building construction workers perspective on environmental impacts of construction-related activities: a relative importance index (RII) and exploratory factor analysis (EFA) approach

Abstract

The construction sector has massive direct and indirect impacts on the environment; as such, improving the environmental performance of the construction industry requires knowledge about the nature of environmental impacts. On-site construction workers get exposed to construction-related environmental impacts, but have received limited research attention on impact identification. This study examined on-site workers' perspectives on the major environmental impacts of building construction processes. Data was collected from 221 on-site building construction workers using a structured questionnaire. The data was analyzed using a relative importance index (RII) to determine the importance levels of environmental impacts and exploratory factor analysis (EFA) for dimension reduction. The RII revealed that dust generation, noise, vibration, and raw material consumption were the impacts of the highest importance levels of severity. The EFA result showed that local issues were the most influential component. The perceived severity of environmental impacts associated with construction-related activities by on-site construction workers were influenced by their exposure experience. The environmental impacts that directly affect or serve as occupational hazards were ranked as the most severe. This study recommends establishing control measures at construction sites considering the health impact of dust and noise pollution on the well-being of on-site construction workers and the local community.