No opportunity wasted

National Recycling Week is a great opportunity to reflect on the progress made as we work to make Victoria the world leader in the use of reused and recycled materials by 2025.

Embedding the Recycled First Policy within projects has already resulted in contractors committing to deliver more than 226,000 tonnes of recycled content across the Childs Road Upgrade, Fitzsimons Lane Upgrade and Hallam North and Heatherton Road Upgrade.

This material weighs the equivalent of Melbourne’s Eureka Tower and includes:

• recycled plastic
• recycled glass
• crushed concrete and brick
• reclaimed asphalt
• crumb rubber in various applications.

The M80 Upgrade, Mordialloc Freeway and Monash Freeway projects are also breaking new ground with 30 per cent reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP). This increase will result in the use of about 70,000 tonnes of extra RAP and the creation of a new specification to see this become common practice across Victoria.

There’s much more to come, with many of our projects looking at lifting the bar with what’s possible in 2022, and as Recycled First is incorporated in 50 Victorian Big Build projects, including Melbourne Airport Rail, North East Link and the Suburban Rail Loop.

The success is shared with the support of project delivery teams and contractors helping Victoria to become a world leader in the sustainable use of recycled and reused materials.