CEMEX go CarbonNeutral in Liverpool
Low-carbon asphalt helps City Council resurfacing programme save 16 tonnes of CO2e
CEMEX have successfully completed a carbon reduction road resurfacing programme with Liverpool City Council, providing a CarbonNeutral asphalt product that has enabled a saving of 16 tonnes of CO2e.
VIALOW Zero, supplied by CEMEX’s Liverpool Docklands asphalt plant, was selected by the Council for Lark Lane – a vibrant hub of the city on the edge of historic Sefton Park. Home to many popular boutiques, bars, and restaurants, high-density pedestrian footfall and road-user traffic means continuous round-the-clock access to the busy street is required.
Working with Dowhigh Contractors, the use of VIALOW warm asphalt not only reduced CO2e, but also lowered the impact of construction fumes during the resurfacing work, creating a better environment for residents, pedestrians, and Dowhigh’s workforce.
Liverpool City Council was also able to reduce the total time needed for traffic restrictions and road closure, as VIALOW asphalt reaches the appropriate trafficking temperatures faster than conventional hot-mix asphalt. As a result, the reopening of Lark Lane was fast-tracked, minimizing the overall disruption to the local community.
Alongside the reduced carbon in the mix, Liverpool City Council chose to offset the residual CO2e to make it a CarbonNeutral product, in accordance with The CarbonNeutral Protocol. By offsetting the residual CO2e from the 284 tonnes of asphalt used for the project, 16 tonnes of CO2e were offset; the equivalent of the emissions generated by the annual electricity use for 24 homes on Lark Lane for a year.
VIALOW comprises a range of low-temperature, low-carbon asphalts from CEMEX. A specially formulated bitumen additive is used that allows manufacture at temperatures up to 40°C lower than standard asphalt mixes with no compromise in performance, plus the added benefit of up to a 20% reduction in embodied carbon emissions.
Pete Hoare, CEMEX’s asphalt area manager, said: ‘We want to make it easier for local authorities and councils to specify lower-carbon solutions. As a result, we worked closely with Liverpool City Council to provide a hardworking solution that not only reduced CO2e, but also the impact on the local community environment as well.
‘Stationary vehicles at traffic lights on road closures can create four times as many pollutants, when compared with moving vehicles, so it’s important that we help to minimize traffic restrictions and the resulting car fumes while roads are being maintained and repaired. VIALOW is the optimum asphalt solution to increase overall productivity in restricted areas, whilst significantly saving CO2e to drive forward the Government’s low-carbon economy by 2050.’
VIALOW belongs to the Vertua family of sustainable building materials now offered by CEMEX as part of the company’s commitment to enhancing the environmental credentials of its operations. This product group also includes low-carbon concrete and admixture offerings.
