Demolition Company Paves Way for Recycled Roads

MEDIA RELEASE – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – 18.05.2010

Auckland Demolition Company Paves the Way for Recycled Roads

An Auckland demolition company is turning waste concrete into roads – offering cost-savings to road builders, reducing use of non-renewable materials from riverbeds and quarries, and cutting carbon emissions.

Ward Demolition of Onehunga, New Zealand’s first company fully dedicated to recycling demolition material, was able to recycle 96% of the demolition waste from Auckland’s BNZ tower, and 92% from Eden Park Stadium.

“This waste would otherwise have been destined for already overloaded landfills. Much of what we recycled was concrete” says Peter Ward, owner of Ward Demolition.

Independent tests show that Recycled Crushed Concrete by Ward Demolition exceeds all standards for NZ road construction across all road types and conditions – wet or dry.

Dr Greg Arnold of Pavespec Ltd, an internationally recognised Road Testing Facility, says that Ward’s Recycled Crushed Concrete is the “…best result to date for an unbound granular material.”

Recycled Crushed Concrete has also been internationally recognised as a significant carbon emission reducer.  Multiple studies show that a significant quantity of the CO2 released during cement manufacture has the potential to be chemically reabsorbed by concrete during its life. By breaking concrete into aggregate-sized particles its surface area is increased, raising its capacity to reabsorb CO2.

Recycled Crushed Concrete is also a sustainable alternative to natural aggregates, meaning that consumption of non-renewable sources such as riverbeds and quarries can be considerably reduced.

The construction and demolition industry is one of New Zealand’s largest waste producers, contributing around 17% of waste that is sent to landfill. Concrete represents approximately 30% of this amount.

This new recycling development now presents considerable cost-saving opportunities for Auckland councils who are struggling to minimise cost impacts on ratepayers for refuse disposal, with the added bonus of being able to build more durable, eco-friendly streets and motorways. 

ENDS

© Scoop Media