Believe it or not, asphalt is America’s most recycled material! In fact, asphalt pavement is now being recycled and reused at a rate over 99%.
“Every year, approximately 73 million tons of reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP) are reused, or nearly twice as much as the combined total of 40 million tons of recycled paper, glass, aluminum and plastics,” said Mike Acott, former president of the National Asphalt Pavement Association (NAPA).
This is great news, because there is a lot of asphalt out there and, despite being incredibly durable, your asphalt pavement will not last forever. Around 3-5 years, asphalt will begin to show its first cracks. Around 5-7 years, asphalt will need its first patch. Then around 15-20 years, asphalt will need to be replaced. Fortunately, “asphalt is a 100% recyclable material,” according to Dr. Zhanping You, P.E., Ph.D., professor of transportation engineering and materials at Michigan Technological University.
Benefits of Recycled Asphalt
- In 2011, 66.7 million tons of RAP was collected in the United States for use in new pavement.
- The use of RAP in 2011 translates to a saving of 21.2 million barrels of liquid asphalt binder and $2.2 billion.
- RAP does not leach petroleum into the earth.
- Asphalt pavement has a small carbon footprint. “When determining the carbon footprint of anything, it’s important to count everything, and to make sure you don’t count anything twice,” said Dr. Howard Marks of the Asphalt Pavement Alliance. “Both initial construction and a 50-year life-cycle were analyzed. In all cases, the carbon footprints of the asphalt pavements were found to be less than 30 percent of equivalent Portland cement concrete pavements.”
- In 2011, 19% of all asphalt produced in the country was made using warm-mix asphalt (WMA).
From production to paving to rehabilitation to recycling, asphalt pavements minimize impact on the environment.
If you have any questions about Asphalt, America’s Most Recycled Material, please contact PTG Enterprises aka My Pavement Guy today by calling 410-636-8777, or click here today! You can check us out on Facebook and Twitter as well!
