Eastland Port has invested in an excavator and crushing head which is being used to crush concrete as part of a recycling programme that will save tonnes of material going to landfill.
The programme involves concrete being crushed and turned into construction materials that will be used back at the port, making good use of recovered material.
Eastland Port Infrastructure Manager Marty Bayley said they were very happy with the performance of the excavator and crushing head and the quality of clean fill being produced.
“We used to pay a lot to get rid of concrete so this will save us some money up front but it is also great to be able to recycle the old concrete instead of buying quarry rock,” he says.
“Turning this concrete back into a product will take a couple of stages – from the excavator breaking down the material to size, and then putting it through a crusher which we contract in to turn it into the final product.
“We have already recycled approximately 4,000 tonnes of concrete and reused most of this in port projects.”
In-situ concrete recycling delivers additional environmental benefits. As well as reducing the amount of waste materials being sent to landfill, it also reduces the need for the import and cartage of rapidly diminishing quarried aggregate resources.
“We also have some other recycling concepts in the pipeline and believe there are other materials we can divert from landfill to recycle positively into both port projects and for other uses.”
The recycling programme fits well with Eastland Group’s commitment to the Climate Leaders Coalition, which the company signed up to in 2019.