MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Public Works and Highways has approved the use of plastic waste aimed at extending the lifespan of asphalt pavements, DPWH Secretary Manuel Bonoan said yesterday.
Bonoan issued a directive to all regional offices, district engineering offices and the different clusters of the Unified Project Management Office to start utilizing “shredded plastic bag wastes to make longer-lasting national roads across the country.”
He recently signed Department Order 139, series of 2024, prescribing the department’s standard specification for the use of the recycled material dubbed Item 310 (15) - bituminous concrete surface course with low-density polyethylene (LDPE) plastic bag waste, hot laid.
Bonoan said the latest policy also aimed to promote the recycling of LDPE plastic bag waste by shredding and using it as an additive to reduce the susceptibility to permanent deformation of bituminous concrete surface course or asphalt concrete.
The use of LDPE plastic bag waste in asphalt cement mix met standards set by the DPWH Bureau of Research and Standards.