The province of Manitoba will be testing asphalt-paving materials that are partially made from recycled asphalt shingles used in roofing.
Fittingly the new road to the Brady Landfill currently under construction will be using about 90 tonnes of the recycled materials in the asphalt being laid down. That is equal to the number of asphalt shingles used on about 45 homes.
By recycling asphalt shingles in roadways and other items the materials are diverted from landfills. It is estimated that asphalt shingles take about 300 years to breakdown in a landfill. In Winnipeg about 30,000 tonnes of shingles end up in landfills.
“The use of recycled materials in road construction is an ecological alternative to a reliance on costly, non-renewable resources,” said Conservation and Climate Minister Sarah Guillemard. “This kind of innovation brings a beneficial and potentially significant environmental impact for Manitobans, in decreasing landfill volumes and lowering greenhouse-gas emissions.”
Testing and monitoring of the road known as Ethan Boyer Way will be ongoing over the next five years to determine its performance in Manitoba’s harsh climate.
“We will continue to monitor Ethan Boyer Way over the years for differences in long-term performance such as cracking and rutting,” said Infrastructure Minister Ron Schuler. “As we all know, nature offers us a variety of weather conditions and we can monitor if the paving materials stand up to Manitoba’s harsh climate.”
© News4.ca 2020
