Bengaluru’s plastic waste to be used for National Highways
Bitumen mixed with recycled plastic could be a solution for longer-lasting roads
By : shwetha satyanarayan
Update: 2015-10-31 04:24 GMT
Bengaluru: There’s a saying in Kannada, ‘Hittala Gide Madalla’ (the backyard tree can’t be medicine) which seems appropriate for BBMP’s lackadaisical attitude towards using plastic. For long, the civic agency has grappled with the plastic menace. Though experts have suggested that bitumen mixed with recycled plastic could be a solution for longer-lasting roads, the BBMP has turned a deaf ear.
Now, the city’s plastic waste is all set to be used for laying roads in other states. Industry giant Reliance Infrastructure will lay national highway roads in Mumbai, Delhi and other states, and city-based firm KK Plastic Waste Management Ltd will supply recycled plastic for laying roads. On Friday, Reliance Infrastructure conducted a quality test on Hosur Road.
Speaking to Deccan Chronicle, Rasool Khan of KK Plastic Waste Management Ltd said that a test track of 200 meters was laid for assessment of the road. “About 350 kilos of plastic waste was intended to be used for laying the test track. Based on the quality of the road, the same plastic will be used to lay highway roads in other parts. To ensure that the road is of superior quality, 50 mm thickness asphalt will be laid on the roads,” he said.
Mr Khan added that about 4,000 tonnes of plastic was needed to lay 1 km of road (8 lane). The firm will buy plastic waste at Rs 27 per kilo. Stressing that not all plastic waste can be a menace, Mr Khan urged that a complete ban on plastic was not essential. “There are multiple solutions to optimally use plastic and no matter how much the government tries to ban plastic, the state will continue to produce plastic. Instead, the government should emphasize using plastic to build roads,” he added.
Yuvaraja, DGM of Reliance Infrastructure (South), said that the firm was committed to constructing sustainable roads. “Based on the results of the material and quality assessment, we will choose the highways that will be laid using plastic,” he concluded.