The City of Canada Bay is joining forces with 15 Sydney councils to drive a new age of sustainable road-making by using recycled crushed glass as a substitute for natural sand in local roads and footpaths.
The Southern Sydney Regional Organisation of Councils (SSROC) Procure Recycled: Paving the Way initiative is the largest local government-led procurement of its kind in NSW history.
"The City of Canada Bay is proud to be part of this important initiative that is contributing to a more sustainable future for our community. We expect to recycle 723 tonnes of glass - the equivalent of 3,254,309 glass bottles per year - from our yellow-lidded recycling bins to build local roads," Mayor Angelo Tsirekas said.
Starting this month, Paving the Way is expected to recycle the equivalent of over 80 million glass bottles per year back into local roads, while reducing greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to planting 14,000 trees per year.
While most kerbside glass is currently recycled back into bottles, Paving the Way will ensure that all remaining glass not fit for making bottles is recycled locally. The community plays a pivotal role by ensuring that they are correctly separating their recycling.
By working together with other councils to signal significant ongoing demand, Paving the Way is stimulating end markets for recycled glass while supporting local jobs and the development of essential recycling infrastructure in the region. Increasing the value of recyclable glass also supports the stabilisation of council recycling costs.
Councils participating in Paving the Way include Bayside, Burwood, Canada Bay, Canterbury-Bankstown, City of Sydney, Georges River, Hornsby, Inner West, Lane Cove, Northern Beaches, Randwick, Ryde, Sutherland, Waverley, Willoughby and Woollahra.
