Asphalt is used for many different applications, including parking lots, residential driveways and roadways. What you may not know about asphalt is that it’s good for the environment. Asphalt is the most recycled product in America – not aluminum, glass, plastic or paper! According to the Federal Highway Administration, 80 percent of asphalt pavement that’s removed is reused.
American Asphalt is proud to be the largest recycler of used tires in California. We use these tires to build new parking lots and roadways for California businesses and commercial locations. Let’s learn more about the environmental benefits of asphalt and our green initiatives.
What are the Environmental Benefits of Sustainable Asphalt Paving?
Asphalt is made from a combination of aggregate (sand, stone, gravel) and asphalt cement. We heat and mix the ingredients together at our facility and then bring the asphalt to your location where we pour, spread and compact it into finished pavement.
As soon as the asphalt cools, people can start driving on it. This makes it incredibly practical and convenient for high-traffic areas. It’s no wonder that 94% of American roads are surfaced with asphalt!
Let’s take a closer look at the environmental benefits to choosing our sustainable California asphalt paving company.
- Energy efficient. Asphalt roads are smooth and create a safe, enjoyable ride. This reduces friction between your tires and the pavement, improving fuel economy and reducing carbon emissions.
- Asphalt can be reused and recycled. In fact, the asphalt industry reuses and recycles roughly 100 million tons of asphalt each year. This saves U.S. taxpayers $1.8 billion annually.
- Made from waste materials. Here at American Asphalt, we use old tires to create asphalt. We’ve kept 10 million tires out of our landfills and have used them to build new city streets, parking lots and more. Asphalt can also be made from other post-consumer waste materials such as rooftop shingles, glass and cement concrete.
- Fast construction. Asphalt does not require a lengthy construction process. We complete most projects in a day without the use of harmful products or materials.
- Less maintenance. Fortunately for taxpayers, asphalt roads are low maintenance and have an extended lifespan. Not only does this save money, it also requires fewer resources to keep our cities safe and beautiful.
American Asphalt’s Green Initiatives
At our asphalt paving company, we’ve always believed in doing the right thing for our environment. Because we can create asphalt using waste like old tires, they don’t end up in our landfills and are instead recycled to improve the function and aesthetics of our communities.
Plus, we think that old tires provide great benefits to our asphalt! When we add tires into liquid asphalt, the rubberized product we create lasts even longer than conventional asphalt.
We all have a commitment to our environment, so let’s work together to make California a beautiful place to work and live. For your free estimate on asphalt repair or replacement, contact American Asphalt today.
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