Builders will be required to show they can recycling when bidding for Victoria’s major projects
Glass bottles, tyres and old plastic will be used to make Victorian roads and railways under a new scheme that requires construction companies bidding for contracts to prove they’ll use as many reusable materials as possible.
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Glass bottles, tyres and old plastic will be used to make Victorian roads and railways under a new scheme requiring builders to use recycling on major projects.
Companies bidding to construct the state’s massive infrastructure pipeline will be asked to prove they can do so with as many reusable materials as possible under the Recycle First program.
Changes to tender processes will mean projects such as the $16 billion North East Link may include roads made partly of discarded rubber.
Railway sleepers made of recycled plastic are already in use at Richmond Station.
Businesses looking to secure government contracts will have to show the state government how they will access recycled materials and prove that they will prioritise them where possible.
The initiative will be overseen by the Major Transport Infrastructure Authority and will include strict quality and safety standards.
“We’re paving a greener future for Victoria’s infrastructure,” Transport Infrastructure Minister Jacinta Allan said.
“Using our circular economy to turn waste into vital materials for our huge transport agenda and getting rubbish out of landfills,”
“Recycled First will boost the demand for reused materials right across our construction sector – driving innovation in sustainable materials and changing the way we think about waste products.”
There are more than 100 major transport projects planned or already construction across the state and some companies are already working to use more recycled materials.
Concrete and other resources leftover from demolition projects were used to add lanes to the Tullamarine Freeway, Monash Freeway and M80 Ring Rd.
About 14,000 tonnes of soil excavated from Parkville for the Metro Tunnel work is being used around road projects in Point Cook.
Scientists at the Australian Road Research Board are also trialling the use of tyre rubber to resurface East Boundary Rd in Bentleigh East.
Environment Minister Lily D’Ambrosio said the scheme would also be an investment into the state’s recycling industry.
“It ensures we recycle and re-use items on government projects, and keep waste out of landfill,” she said.
Over the next three years, more than 190 million glass bottles will be used on the surface of 260km of roads as part of the Western Roads Upgrade.
Another 20,000 tonnes of recycling has been earmarked for improvements on the Monash Freeway and M80 Ring Rd.