100,000 plastic bags and 324kg of canola oil used in major Adelaide road upgrade
It may appear to be normal asphalt but part of the Regency Rd to Pym St project is made entirely from recycled material.
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It may appear to be normal asphalt but part of the Regency Rd to Pym St project is made entirely from recycled material, including more than 100,000 plastic bags and 324kg of canola oil.
The initiative represents the first time a State Government road project has incorporated sealed surfaces made from 100 per cent recyclable materials.
A total of 110,000 plastic bags, 324kg of recycled canola oil, 2500 printer cartridges and 207 tonnes of recycled asphalt have been used to seal the construction office’s car park, off South Rd near Hudson Ave at Croydon Park, and will also be used on slip lanes and side streets.
The relatively new method of sealing roads is not yet ready to be used on major motorways themselves.
Transport Minister Stephan Knoll said the project saved 9.4 tonnes of carbon dioxide, which was equal to taking nine cars off the road.
He said the cost of building recycled roads was about the same as standard roads but he expected the price to drop as technology improved.
“The exciting opportunity here is that as we develop this technology better, as we build economies of scale around using these kinds of materials, we can actually build cheaper roads,” Mr Knoll said.
“This is something we can use more and more to fix roads and build new roads in South Australia.”
Environment Minister David Speirs said he believed using recycled materials to build roads was “the future of road construction in Australia”.
“As a Government, we are always looking at ways in which we can reduce our carbon footprint and protect our environment for future generations,” he said.
The $354 million Regency Rd to Pym St project will create a new 1.8km section of non-stop motorway along South Rd and formed part of the North-South Corridor initiative.
In December 2018, Onkaparinga Council unveiled SA’s first recycled road, constructed out of binned plastic and glass, in Happy Valley.