One of TARBA’s key advocacy efforts is to increase the use of Recycled Crushed Aggregate (RCA) in public infrastructure projects across the province.
RCA is derived from reclaimed asphalt pavement and concrete, making it a valuable construction material that meets quality standards set by the Ontario Provincial Standard Specifications (OPSS1010) and offers substantial environmental and economic benefits. Despite its promise, only 7% or less of the aggregates used in Ontario currently come from recycled sources.
TARBA’s advocacy for RCA is more than just promoting a sustainable product; it’s about building a greener, more cost-effective future for Ontario’s infrastructure. By supporting the widespread adoption of RCA, we can reduce our environmental footprint, save public funds, and continue to deliver the high-quality infrastructure that Ontarians rely on.
Advocacy Ask
To maximize the environmental and economic benefits of RCA, TARBA along with our industry partners, is advocating for two key actions:
- Harmonizing municipal specifications through the OPSS1010 MUNI, and
- Mandating a minimum of 25% recycled materials in all linear public infrastructure projects at the municipal, regional, and provincial levels when available.
We have met with engineering staff from Brampton, Mississauga, Peel, and Richmond Hill, as well as Ontario Ministry staff from Transportation, Natural Resources and Forestry, Environment, Conservation and Parks, Finance, and Municipal Affairs and Housing to help provide information and advance our advocacy asks. The call for increased use of RCA by municipalities was also included in RCCAO’s Ontario Budget submissions, both in-person held at the City of Markham and in a letter to the Minister of Finance.
Technical Session & Presentation Videos
TARBA hosted a technical session to review producer quality control measures and the benefits of using RCA on Tuesday, April 16th. The session was attended by 50 municipal and regional engineering staff and consultants. The three video recordings of each presentation are available on TARBA’s YouTube Channel:
- Amy Pastor, VP of Sustainability at EXP
- Stephen Lee, Head, Pavements at Ontario Ministry of Transportation
- Domenic Passalacqua, General Manager at D. Crupi & Sons Ltd.
Please feel free to share the link with colleagues, municipal and regional officials, and anyone else who would be interested in learning more.
2024 Good Roads Annual Conference – RCA Panel
On April 23, TARBA hosted a plenary room panel at the annual Good Roads conference, which was held at the Fairmount Royal York and attended by more than 500 municipal and regional engineers and other relevant conference attendees.
Paving the Way: Leveraging Recycled Crushed Aggregates for More Sustainable Road
Construction panelists included:
- Kevin Martin, Project Manager, Fermar Paving
- Sam Esfandiarpour, Senior Project Manager, Pavement Services, EXP
- James Smith, Manager, Technical Programs and Research, Good Roads
- Raly Chakarova, Executive Director, Toronto and Area Road Builders Association (Moderator)
TARBA Quality Control Manual
From our discussion with municipalities, we have heard that RCA quality and performance are the top concerns and barriers to allowing more recycled materials in projects. To assist producers and educate municipal project owners, the TARBA QC Manual was updated to provide a technically sound quality control plan for producing, utilizing, and ensuring the quality of recycled aggregates as specified in OPSS1010. Individual producers may enhance these requirements to achieve company objectives and/or to meet more particular standards.
OPSS1010 Changes to Granular B Type II
We welcomed proposed changes to include recycled material in Granular B Type II, but advocated for a further change to eliminate the restriction on “no deleterious material” and the inclusion of deleterious materials up to 1%. We are working on further advocacy with MTO to consider the inclusion of RAP as well.
For more information about the benefits of RCA, visit https://tarba.org/recycled-aggregate/.