Plastic roads in India

What is the issue?

India has a huge potential of using its plastic waste for laying plastic roads.

What are plastic roads?

• Roads constructed from mix of aggregate (sand and stone chips), bitumen and shredded plastic.
• The new material mix is reported to have superior binding.
• But plastic roads are quite the rage in the European Union which has taken on massive environmental conservation and pollution mitigation goals.

What is the status of plastic roads in India?

• India has already built some 21,000 miles of roads using plastic waste.
• The civic authority in Bengaluru has experimented with plastic roads building some 600 km of thoroughfare.
• The Centre even issued a set of guidelines for plastic blending in rural roads programme, the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana.
• Researchers in Tamil Nadu, has developed plastic blended water-resistant blocks, it can be used to line canals and other flowing water bodies.
• Plastic based roads are catching up in many other cities in India.

What are the advantages of plastic roads?

• Safer disposal of plastic is ensured than melting it down and releasing copious quantities of toxic fumes.
• It is a cheap input that could pull down road construction cost.
• Can be efficiently used for rural road building and smart city plans.
• The bitumen usage is cut because of plastic thereby reducing the carbon footprint of road construction.
• It has greater durability than asphalt-concrete roads because they don’t absorb water.

Source: Indian Express