Asphalt shingle recycling continues to grow

Boggs Paving, Inc., a highway/heavy contractor out of Monroe, North Carolina, recently launched a program designed to reclaim materials and save substantial landfill space by recycling asphalt-shingles used in roofing homes. Numerous companies in various U.S. states, and Canadian provinces have been recycling asphalt-shingles for years in approved asphalt mixes, but the “Roof to Roads” program marks the first time a company has received a permit from the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources to undertake the entire recycling process at an asphalt-manufacturing facility.    

Roads in Union and Anson counties were resurfaced with the reclaimed shingles this summer.  

“We accepted numerous loads of asphalt shingles in the first three weeks of the program,” said Mike Batson with Boggs Paving. “We are making tremendous progress with our Roof to Roads program and are pleased with the participation and support from many roofing contractors in our area.”  

The process – post-consumer reclaimed asphalt shingles (PRAS) – removes nails and debris from discarded shingles before grinding them into particles that are blended back into asphalt. The result is a recycled, green product for paving and resurfacing roads. This pavement method limits the use of virgin petroleum and aggregates processed from the earth, reducing both consumer expense and the use of environmentally costly landfill space.  Boggs Paving has been targeting area roofing container companies that typically dispose of asphalt shingles by taking them to landfills.   

"Union County has a number of recycling programs in place that are saving valuable landfill space on a daily basis," said Jennifer Nance with Union County Public Works.   

While the Roof to Roads program is still new, efforts are receiving support from public solid waste officials who have limited landfill space that is dwindling and recognize the opportunity and benefit of safely reusing these materials.  Visit www.boggspaving.com.