Tear off asphalt shingle roofing now
has a new lease on life in B.C. and Alberta.
By Hilary Hanna
Recycling asphalt shingles known as RAS
into road base has over a decade worth of history in the Eastern
States. Although not a new process, in Western Canada it's taken a
little longer to "lift off" so to speak.
Kelowna-based Gemaco Sales Ltd, which
operates the only licensed facility dedicated to asphalt shingle
recycling in Metro Vancouver at its Recycle Asphalt Shingle (RAS)
Station on Annacis Island, is changing all
that.
Recycling tear off or deconstruction
asphalt shingles is a process that allows this valuable resource to
shine. Not only in its work in protecting people's homes, this
ground up RAS product can now pave ways to better-quality and less
expensive roadways.
When residential asphalt shingles are
brought to asphalt shingle recycling stations, the loads are
checked for harmful materials, such as asbestos and evaluated for
acceptable small amounts of non-hazardous paper, plastic, metal and
wood mixed with the recyclable, shingle materials. Approximately
every 100 tonnes a load is segregated and tested for
asbestos.
Once cleared of the risk of possible
contamination the load is reintroduced to the clean-up process.
After the shingles are cleaned manually and with heavy equipment
they are then loaded into a purpose-built, mobile, Rotochopper RG1
shingle grinding machine. There is no need to remove the nails from
shingles as this machine is equipped with a cross belt magnet that
pulls them out during the grinding process.
Whether organic or fiberglass, shingles
ground to a specific size or grade, retain an asphalt content of
more than 20 per cent that can be extracted. Using just
three-to-five percent of RAS in hot or warm asphalt mixes will
replace considerable amounts of virgin asphalt that may provide
paving companies with substantial savings.
This end product can also be used by cement
companies as fuel for their kilns, as a road base offering dust
control for secondary roads as well as paving parking lots, bike
paths and driveways.
The environmental necessity of re-using
shingles is highlighted in an Athena Institute report (2007), which
estimated that up to 1.25 million tonnes of asphalt-based roofing
waste is generated each year in Canada, with re-roofing accounting
for most of this waste. In the Vancouver region this major waste
stream adds as much as 80,000 tonnes per year or the equivalent of
75 lbs per person to landfills.
With the growing importance of creating and
maintaining a sustainable environment at the forefront of
government agendas, and as awareness and desire for positive
environmental action grows in local communities, the need for RAS
facilities will grow. Alberta's Climate Change Action Plan is
expected to cut projected greenhouse gas emissions in half by 2050,
and Metro Vancouver has initiated a "Zero Waste Challenge" program,
the goal of which is to divert 70 per cent of waste from landfills
by 2015.
Recycling roofing shingles can make a
significant contribution to these goals. For every
tonne of asphalt shingles recycled, the local economy can
save two barrels of oil that would have been used to produce the
shingles, creating a smaller carbon footprint by saving up to
160,000 barrels of oil annually.
According to Dan Krivit, a shingle
recycling consultant in Minnesota and
senior project manager at Foth Infrastructure & Environment,
the greenhouse gas savings for every tonne of RAS recycled equals
60 tonnes of CO2 saved.
Roofing companies are in a great position
to help make a difference to the environment and attract new
clients with this latest means of recycling, while potentially
increasing their revenues and possibly realizing savings in tipping
fees. In fact, RAS facilities that recover and repurpose what used
to be an end-of-life roofing material with no purpose other than
taking up valuable landfill space are a real step forward in
reducing our carbon footprint.
Shingle recycling is a winning proposition
for everyone involved, from the average homeowner who is able to
help reduce waste when they re-roof to the roofing and paving
companies who can potentially save money while boosting the
economy. In addition, recycling employs seven people for every one
person employed at a landfill site.
Hilary Hanna is vice-president of
Gemaco Sales Ltd. Gemaco Sales, with its head office in Kelowna,
B.C., opened the only licensed facility dedicated to asphalt
shingle recycling in the Metro Vancouver region in February 2010.
For more information, contact her at hilary@gemacosales.com or
visit www.gemacosales.com
.
Reprinted with permission from
Construction Business
magazine