Did you know? Over 1 Lakh Kilometres of Roads in India have been built using Plastic Waste so far.

Seeing the alarming rates of plastic consumption in the world, finding alternative methods of plastic as well as deriving methods of recycling and reusing the already generated plastic waste is of utmost importance. Being a non-biodegradable material, it does not decay over time and is eventually dumped into landfills, oceans, or are incinerated, thus increasing water and air pollution.

Usage of plastic waste for road construction is a great initiative towards plastic waste management. Plastic waste consisting of single-use plastic such as polythene, plastic cups, and glasses, plastic wrappers of food items, etc. are shredded, heated, and then mixed with bitumen at very high temperatures resulting in strengthening of the overall mixture for road construction. Here are some benefits of using Plastic Waste in Road Construction:-

1. Increases Road strength.
2. Reduces roads fatigue causing less wear and tear
3. Plastic Waste roads have a longer life.
4. The plastic present in the road makes it more resistant to rains and water stagnation.
5. Increases binding between the mixture resulting in less road stripping and potholes.
6. Plastic waste in road construction is Increasing the resistance of roads to change in weather.

While bitumen has many different grades, plastic mixed with bitumen acts as a strong binder for the mix overall increasing the stability of the mix. By embracing the concept of extended producer responsibility, industries are urged to design products with recyclability in mind, reducing the burden on landfills and oceans.

DCC is working in the field of solid waste management for more than a decade in different parts of India. Working at various landfills have certainly helped us in widening our expertise and knowledge into new sectors like liquid and plastic waste management.