20 June 2008

New Guidance to Boost Asphalt Recycling and to Clear up Confusion

A new document, 'Guidance on the production of fully recovered asphalt road planings', has been produced jointly by QPA Scotland and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA). The Guidance, which promotes the recycling of asphalt road planings and clears up confusion over the application of Waste Management Licensing Regulations, is particularly significant in helping to secure industry sustainability targets. The Guidance was launched on 17 June 2008 at a QPA/SEPA seminar at the Salutation Hotel in Perth.

The Guidance sets out the steps producers can take to recover asphalt road planings for reuse as an aggregate product and to avoid the pitfalls of waste classification. As well as being of value to the industry in helping to meet sustainability objectives, the recycling of asphalt planings clearly brings some environmental benefits. It is expected that the Guidance will lead to 500,000 tonnes of asphalt road planings being recycled per year. John Sheridan, Regional Director of QPA Scotland, commented, "we believe the Guidance is clear and practical and of considerable benefit not just to the industry in promoting one of our Core Values in the use of recycled aggregates, but also to the country at large."

The document is also a combined effort by QPA and SEPA to clarify waste legislation, making it easier for those seeking to reuse asphalt road planings to know their legal responsibilities. James Shannon, Policy Development Officer at SEPA, explained, "Through collaborative working between SEPA and the QPA we have produced a document which will bring regulatory certainty to the processing and reuse of asphalt road planings and encourage its reuse. The agreed methodology, if followed, will result in a product whose use will not be subject to the requirements of the waste regulations thus relieving industry, and users, of the administrative and financial burdens usually associated with the reuse of processed asphalt road planings".

Work on the Guidance started over a year ago and the launch at the QPA/SEPA seminar was attended by 120 delegates from the aggregates industry, key transport bodies, consultancies, contractors, environmental agencies and local authorities.

The Guidance and all related information can be downloaded by QPA members from the QPA members' website here.
Information can also been found on the SEPA website:
http://www.sepa.org.uk/pdf/guidance/waste/road_planings_guidance.pdf
http://www.sepa.org.uk/pdf/nws/events/past/asphalt_road_planings/presentation.pdf

ENDS

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