- Up to 10,000 tonnes of paper and plastic to be diverted from landfill.
- $3M Cooperative Research Centre grant given to the project.
- Partnership between UNSW, State Asphalts, Closed Loop, Primaplas and Asphaltech.
Australians produce incredible amounts of waste every year.
According to Clean Up Australia, Aussies create 540kg of household waste per person, each year, amounting to 10kg per person, per week.
Plastic waste is also a major concern, estimates say 130,000 tonnes of plastic ends up in Aussie waterways each year.
Diverting just 10,000 tonnes of that could make our sea-faring friends a lot happier, sea life caught in plastic waste a common headline.
UNSW Sydney has teamed up with State Asphalts, Closed Loop, Primaplas and Asphaltech to convert that waste into construction materials to build roads.
The $3M project is set to transform the recycling sector in Australia, Professor Nasser Khalili from UNSW saying:
“The project will advance new pathways to addressing Australia’s recycling capability and capacity through developing value-added products to the competitive advantage of Australian road construction industry.”
The project is funded by the Cooperative Research Centre Project, also known as CRC-P.
The grant and program is made available as an Australian federal government initiative.
Gaps in the market could also be addressed, Professor Khalili noted it had, “tremendous potential for commercialisation and international exportation.”
