How Waste Equals Is Rewriting Construction's 600-Million-Ton Problem
By Mya Parr, March 2026
Wait, What’s Waste?
In construction and manufacturing waste is often treated as unavoidable, the final step in a process.
As of 2022, the construction industry accounts for roughly 30-40% of solid waste. In the U.S. alone, construction and demolition generated more than 600 million tons of debris in 2018. In a world where growth feels infinite but resources are finite, it begs the question: how long can we keep up with the waste being generated annually from these practices?
Enter Waste Equals.
From Observing to Moving
Benjamin Stauss is a values-driven business owner with a deep passion for rethinking waste. In an interview with Ben, we went back to the beginning: how did he get here? What led him to create Waste Equals?
While in college in Wisconsin, Ben interned at a sign manufacturing company that produced large-scale signage for buildings. The work required cutting letters out of acrylic sheets, and once the letters were removed, the remaining material was tossed aside. As the company’s first-ever marketing intern, Ben wasn’t responsible for production decisions, but he couldn’t help noticing how much usable material was being thrown away.
Out of curiosity, the team began experimenting. Excess acrylic was turned into cutting boards, Christmas ornaments, and small items that were gifted to vendors. What began as a creative side project quickly reframed the way Ben thought about waste.
“We were turning what was considered waste into something useful and valuable,” Ben said. “That’s when it really clicked for me.”
Post-graduation, with no job offers that excited him, Ben took a leap. He moved from Wisconsin to Boise and began building the business from there.
The “Aha” Moment
In creating a business focused on tangible impact, Ben recalls one project that stood out as a true “aha” moment on just how big of an impact he could make.
“When we started working with reclaimed basketball flooring, the first project involved thousands of square feet of material. That was the first time I really thought, ‘Wow, this is a massive amount of material diverted in one go.’”
Seeing that volume all at once was a turning point.
When Ben calculated the associated carbon savings, it reframed how he thought about impact. Diverting a single truckload of material could outweigh months–or even years–of individual sustainability efforts.
Since then, Waste Equals has continued working with contractors, construction tear-downs, and local businesses, reclaiming used materials and reselling them through their Boise location.
To Waste or Not to Waste
But not everyone thinks about waste in their day-to-day lives. So we asked: what was the biggest misconception you had about waste before starting Waste Equals?
Ben expected people to be more ready to act. He assumed that businesses producing waste would be eager to find better alternatives, but in reality, people are busy. Waste becomes a sunk cost. “Business as usual” takes over.
That’s why Ben approached this gap as a business solution.
“We aim to save companies time or money. If we can remove the burden and make diversion easier than sending something to the landfill, that’s when real change happens.”
“A common misconception is that working with us is more expensive. In reality, most of what we sell is cheaper than new alternatives. Sometimes certain products cost more because of the labor involved, but overall, reuse is often the more affordable option.” Ben said.
Looking ahead five years, Ben doesn’t imagine Waste Equals as something radically different.
“I hope we’re still right here, with deep roots in the community,” he stated.
Success, to him, looks less like rapid expansion and more like a loyal customer base that believes in the work and sticks with it through uncertainty. That kind of relationship, he says, is invaluable.
Designing a Different Default
For those who want to reduce their impact but don’t know where to begin, Ben’s advice is simple.
“Start by paying attention to what gets thrown away,”
Look at what gets thrown away at your workplace or on your projects. Notice the materials no one questions. Then reach out. A quick photo or phone call can reveal options people didn’t even know existed.
Waste often feels inevitable.
“You just have to ask,” Ben said, smiling.
