Mornington Peninsula Shire is trialling a new material for footpaths and will be recycling plastics into roads.

The much-anticipated road upgrade at Wilkinson St and Carmichael St in Tootgarook is being constructed with Plastiphalt – an asphalt product using recycled waste plastic.

“With 340 tonnes of asphalt being laid, the road will contain approximately 1,200kg of plastic or 430,000 plastic bags,” said Cr Hugh Fraser of Nepean Ward.

“The footpath at Wilkinson St and Carmichael St will see soft plastics directly under our feet.

“This innovative use of materials will reduce the Shire’s dependence on the use of extractive materials quarried from environmentally sensitive places.”

Cr Sarah Race said: “The production of standard concrete produces a significant amount of greenhouse gases, by replacing 5 per cent of the rock used in the concrete with recycled plastic we’re reducing the energy required to build the footpath, as well as diverting 700kg (175,000 plastic packages) of plastic from landfill.”

Mayor Cr Despi O’Connor said: “Not only does this provide a market for plastic otherwise sent to landfill, it also adds performance benefits to the road, meaning longer life and lower maintenance.”

This is a product made from recycled plastic from the Redcycle program which sees soft plastics collected at supermarkets turned into usable construction materials.

The Council says it is working towards a more sustainable future.