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It’s no secret that we’ve got a global problem with plastic pollution, so we’re collectively always looking for new and innovative ways to use the plastics we recycle, and this one – turning plastic waste into roads – seems like a gem!
A U.K. company called MacRebur came up with the solution, which feels pretty groundbreaking, and aims to not only reduce waste, but produce roads that are stronger and last longer than regular asphalt.
CEO Toby McCartney was working with a charity in Southern India that worked in landfills, collecting plastics that were then melted and used to fill potholes when he wondered why the technology couldn’t be applied more liberally.
The idea was that they would take a blend of plastic waste, granulate it, and add it to the asphalt concrete formula already in use on roads, runways, parking lots, and racetracks around the world.
The plastic used has to be labeled as waste, and cannot be new or recycled plastic. And since heat is required to make asphalt, it needs to have a specific melting temperature.
None of these demands rule out a majority of the plastic waste around the world, and they even allow for black plastic, which is typically very hard to recycle.
Not only that, but the technique is cheaper to make than regular asphalt!
The roads that contain plastic waste look the same as every other road but they are more flexible, which allows them to cope better with weather damage, reducing the appearance of cracks and potholes.
Key fact… it’s about 60% stronger and lasts 3x longer than the asphalt we’re currently using.
Wow.
I love when people come up with initiatives like these, and let’s all hope to see a worldwide application in the near future. Because even if people don’t care about saving the environment, everyone should be up for fewer potholes.
That’s a winning proposition if I’ve ever heard one!
