Fulton Hogan has made significant strides in recycling construction materials this year, receiving funding for a new recycling facility while partnering on research with Swinburne University.
In January, the New Zealand-based construction and aggregates supplier received $740,000 for a regional glass processing hub in Lara, 60km southwest of Melbourne, under the Recycling Modernisation Fund.
Delivered by Sustainability Victoria, the grant was one of 13 successful projects awarded through the Fund which will increase the state’s recycling capacity by a combined 137,000 tonnes per year
Fulton Hogan infrastructure services general manager Peter Curl said the facility would commence construction later in 2022.
“Once up and running we’ll be sourcing up to 10,000 tonnes of glass per year from Geelong and other local councils’ areas to be used in our asphalt products and laid on local roads,” Curl said.
“This initiative provides a local reuse option for local recovered materials and strengthens the availability of sustainable solutions and local manufacturing in the Geelong area.”
The company has another glass processing facility in Warrnambool, almost 200km further west, where car tyres and plastics are recycled for use in asphalt products.
“We’re proud to be a part of the transformation of Australia’s waste and recycling industry and to support Victoria’s transition to a circular economy by increasing the capacity and capability of our state’s recycling sector,” Curl said.
More recently, Swinburne University received almost $190,000 for a project which could replace some need for virgin quarried materials, of which Fulton Hogan Industries is a partner.
The project will investigate new blends of foamed bitumen using recycled glass fines and recovered plastics instead of traditional quarry aggregates, according to Sustainability Victoria.
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