CPB Contractors embedded sustainability in its delivery of The Northern Road Stages 5 and Stage 6.
The NSW Government upgraded The Northern Road to cater for future residential and commercial growth, and to support the new Western Sydney International Airport. The upgrade has improved safety for all road users, and to minimise impacts on the community, the upgrade was delivered in stages. CPB Contractors was responsible for stages 5 and 6.
CPB Contractors Group Manager Sustainability David Fox said: “Our approach to sustainability rests on the fact that with every project we can build a better future. Working together with our clients, wherever possible we recycle instead of using new raw materials and avoid activities that create waste.
“The construction industry is a major part of the Australian economy, and so the sustainability actions our industry takes are important.”
The sustainability achievements on The Northern Road included:
- Replaced 210 High Powered Sodium lighting with energy efficient LED lighting and used over 30 solar light towers in construction
- Reused spoil from CPB Contractors WestConnex M8 and Rozelle Interchange projects
- A 23% reduction in materials lifecycle impacts, primarily through the savings achieved with an on-site batching plant and the addition of fly ash and slag to concrete mixes, achieving up to 62% in supplementary cementing materials
- Substituted 99% of potable water with non-potable water sourced from temporary basins and dams
- Recycled 98% of construction and demolition waste
- Reused or recycled 99% of usable spoil.
The asphalt pavement used recycled glass, up to 30% reclaimed asphalt pavement, and 1,935 tonnes of ReconophaltTM, a road surfacing material containing recycled content from waste streams such as soft plastics, glass and toner cartridges. By using ReconophaltTM the project reduced the energy in its production of standard hot mix asphalts by 30% and reused:
- 1,548,320 plastic bags
- 487,720 glass bottles
- 34,837 printer cartridges.