The Various Upsides of Concrete Recycling

So many good reasons make concrete one of the most reliable materials used for construction purposes in Australia. One such reason is concrete's recyclability. Concrete recycling is a smart and sustainable way to reuse large volumes of aggregate generated when concrete structures are torn down or heavily refurbished. The process itself is rather easy and straightforward. The old concrete material is simply crushed at the recycling plant into new aggregate of smaller size and specific quality. Often, the recycled concrete is used as aggregate for new concrete.

Here are a number of useful benefits associated with the concrete recycling process.

Reduced pressure on the landfill

As the amount of waste produced during concrete demolitions and other concrete waste-generating projects continues to increase every day, there is an increasing need to minimise the amount of waste destined for the landfill. The smaller the amount of rubble that ends up in the landfill, the more the space available for other types of waste, especially the non-recyclables. Therefore, taking your concrete to the recycling plant is a clever way to avoid the landfill.

Reduced need for mining activities

Turning concrete debris into usable aggregate reduces the demand for newly mined gravel used for other construction jobs such as laying of pavement. Less energy is used up as compared to processing new aggregate. This impacts positively on the environment, which is constantly being hard-pressed to meet increasing demand for new energy. What is more, recycled aggregate saves on costs, as it is much cheaper to produce compared to mining for new gravel.

Extends the lifespan of concrete

Recycled concrete can be used for many applications including as clean fill for soil stabilisation, as aggregate for installation of paving, as a stable bed for pipe bedding, as a material for making exposed aggregate concrete, and even as a firm subbase foundation for road construction. This means rubble that would otherwise be rendered as waste will be accorded a new lease of life.

Reduced hauling costs

Before new concrete can be used at the intended site, it has to be moved there. As compared to new concrete, recycled concrete carries less weight per unit of volume. This results in trucking benefits because you can haul more material per trip.

Although the practice of concrete recycling concrete is quite new, its popularity seems to be gradually rising with each passing day. Considering the advantages highlighted above, it shouldn't be difficult to figure out why.