Manitoba aims to recycle asphalt shingles

October 13, 2020

Ninety tonnes of asphalt roofing shingles torn off about four dozen houses in around Winnipeg will be used in a new Manitoba recycling pilot program. The program will recycle aimed at using the asphalt from roofing shingles in road paving.
The concept is not new—using recycled asphalt shingles for road construction peaked in 2014 according to U.S.-based Asphalt Shingle Recycling Systems. That year, a study from the U.S. Federal Highway Administration reported premature cracking in relatively new asphalt pavements. The agency found the common factor among the cracked roads was a relatively high use of recycled asphalt shingles.
A parallel drop in concrete prices also led to a decline in the use of recycled asphalt shingles for highway construction.
Winnipeg and surrounding areas produce more than 30,000 tonnes of tear-off shingles every year that end up in landfills and take approximately 300 years to break down, explained Manitoba Infrastructure Minister Ron Schuler.
“Our government is making great efforts to invest in eco-friendly infrastructure in support of transforming waste in Manitoba,” said Schuler. “Being able to divert reusable waste from our landfills, such as shingles, allows our province to reduce its environmental footprint.” 
The pilot program, launched October 1, will focus on paving a new road near Winnipeg’s Brady Landfill by mixing asphalt with concrete and binding agents.
Manitoba Infrastructure, in conjunction with the University of Manitoba, will conduct ongoing testing of pavement conditions over the next five years to monitor performance. 
“We will continue to monitor [the pilot paving project] for differences in long-term performance such as cracking and rutting,” said Schuler. “As we all know, nature offers us a variety of weather conditions and we can monitor if the paving materials stand up to Manitoba’s harsh climate.” 
Testing and monitoring will allow data to be collected and analyzed for future planning of construction projects using environmentally friendly recycled materials, he explained.