Eastern Province Governor leads plastic-mixed asphalt road paving initiative
Source:FT
From left: AGC Innovate MD/CTO Dr. Judith Samaranayake, Eastern Province Governor Anuradha Yahampath and Eastern Province Chief Secretary Thusitha P. Wanigasinghe
Eastern Province Governor Anuradha Yahampath initiated a sustainable solution to the ever-increasing waste plastic environmental menace by utilising green technology in converting waste plastic into an industrial raw material which becomes an additive to conventional asphalt, for road paving in EP.
A Memorandum of Understanding was signed by Eastern Province Chief Secretary Thusitha P. Wanigasinghe and AGC Innovate Ltd. MD/CTO Dr. Judith Samaranayaka, at the EP Governor’s Office, Trincomalee.
The unique tripartite stakeholder model of the MOU ensures its long-term sustainability. The Eastern Province Governor’s Office represents the waste plastic source by virtue of the tonnage collected daily by the Pradeshiya Sabhas from households and industries while the Provincial Road Development Department represents the end user with AGC Innovate being the third party in the model as the Technology Provider.
The initiative will commence with the paving of a two-kilometre highway which will consume six to eight tons of waste plastic, to be sourced from the Batticaloa Municipal Council Waste Collection Centre, and two other identified locations.
The technology was piloted in 2018 under the supervision of the national regulator, RDA on a stretch of highway in Ratmalana and was certified as an environmentally suitable initiative following two years of rigorous testing and observation.
EP Governor Yahampath stated at the ceremonial event that she endorses the adoption of this technology as it is the most logical solution for the waste plastic menace by delivering a cleaner environment, reducing the carbon footprint, saving of forex on bitumen replacement, promoting community participation in waste plastic segregation, all of which are wholly consistent with President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s initiative towards the implementation of a sustainable management of plastic waste.
