Destruction waste from shelling of Mykolaiv to be recycled for road repairs

Mykolaiv plans to recycle 12,000 tonnes of demolition waste per month, photo by NikVesti

For the second month in a row, a site for recycling construction waste, which, in particular, was generated as a result of Russian shelling of the city, has been operating in Mykolaiv. The equipment's capacity allows it to process about 12,000 tonnes of such waste per month, and the resulting material is to be used for road repairs.

The site operates on the basis of the municipal enterprise «ELU Avtodorig», a correspondent of NikVesti reports.

According to Vitalii Shevchenko, director of the company, the site for recycling waste generated after arrivals was launched with the help of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and UNDP, which provided the city with the necessary equipment.

«In the test mode, which is more than a month, we processed about 3,000 tonnes, but this was processed after sorting. It took a lot of time to set up the equipment, to take safety courses on explosive materials, materials that include asbestos. It took some time. We believe that we are about 20% operational. In normal operation, this equipment should process about 2,000 tonnes per shift... By the end of the summer, we plan to reach 10-12,000 tonnes per month or more,» said Vitalii Shevchenko.

Vitalii Shevchenko, Director of ELU Avtodorig, plans to use the shredded construction waste for road repairs, photo by NikVesti

As a result of the equipment's operation, construction waste turns into screenings and stones that look like gravel and crushed stone, which can be reused after certification.

«Upon arrival, all waste is collected, taken to the site, sorted, and processed. It is turned into separate fractions of stones. These stones will be certified and given a proper assessment of where they can be used. But as we can see from other cities, this material is used on city roads, but not on main roads, where there is no heavy load. It is a substrate for the main layer, and it reduces the cost of road construction,» said Vitalii Shevchenko.

Construction waste before recycling, photo by NikVesti

Construction waste after recycling, photo by NikVesti

He also believes that the resulting material can be used at excavation sites where water utilities or thermal power plants repair underground utilities. According to him, the sand that is currently being used to fill in the trench sites causes a large subsidence, which leads to road damage.

«Another thing is that we have a lot of water and thermal power plant trenches, and they usually fill them with sand or the raw materials that were already there. But the sand causes a very large subsidence on the road in the place where they patch it. This is my vision, I believe that if this raw material is used to fill in these potholes, it will not shrink so much,» said the director of the utility company.

JICA and UNDP helped Mykolaiv with equipment for a new site for processing demolition waste, photo by NikVesti

Answering a question from a correspondent of NikVesti, Vitalii Shevchenko said that the site will be busy even after the war, as there are many old buildings in the city that will also have to be demolished.

«There are many buildings in the city that were built using technology from the 1950s, and their service life has already expired. Today, we have no equipment in the city and region that can process such houses: demolish them, sort them, and process them into raw materials. The process of recycling construction has been working in the world for a long time. It has not yet been launched in Ukraine. Someday we will have to demolish these houses and recycle them. Therefore, I believe that the site will still work,» said Vitalii Shevchenko.

In addition to recycling demolition waste, the plant will also accept small amounts of construction waste — citizens will be able to bring it there for processing and even get raw materials that can be used in construction. The executive committee is to determine the price in the near future.

«The mechanism will be adopted by the executive committee, there will be a general price for processing 1 tonne of such waste, and citizens will be able to bring it and process it. It will be cheaper than taking it to a landfill and paying money. They can not just hand over the garbage, they can get a recycling service if they need it, they can take it away,» said Vitalii Shevchenko.

JICA and UNDP helped Mykolaiv with equipment for a new recycling site for demolition waste, photo by NikVesti

JICA and UNDP provided Mykolaiv with equipment for a new recycling site for demolition waste, photo by NikVesti

JICA and UNDP assisted Mykolaiv with equipment for a new recycling site for demolition waste, photo by NikVesti

JICA and UNDP provided equipment for a new recycling site in Mykolaiv, photo by NikVesti

Demolition waste in Mykolaiv region

By the end of 2023, Mykolaiv Oblast is among the six regions most contaminated with demolition waste: it covers an area of more than half a million square metres. Currently, some of this waste is stored at landfills, while others are still at the sites of destruction. This is harmful to the environment of the region: the destruction waste pollutes water, soil, and air. This raises the issue of their professional disposal and recycling to rebuild the region, as described in the article NikVesti «Raising from the ruins: How is Mykolaiv region going to get rid of destruction waste?»

As of the end of November 2023, 57 hectares of the territory of Mykolaiv region were littered with construction waste caused by shelling. At the same time, the Department of Housing and Communal Services of Mykolaiv reported that by the end of 2023, the city should receive a special installation for shredding demolition waste.

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In 2023, five temporary storage sites for demolition waste were identified in Mykolaiv region.

At the same time, a plant for processing construction waste generated by enemy shelling is to be built in Mykolaiv region. The plant is expected to process construction waste from two regions: Mykolaiv and Kherson, said Oleh Pylypenko, head of the Shevchenkove community. The Shevchenkove community also wants to deal with the disposal of hazardous demolition waste containing asbestos.

In particular, the Japanese international cooperation agency JICA, which plans to build a solid waste recycling plant in Mykolaiv, has donated about €5 million worth of construction waste processing equipment to the city. The project to build a construction waste recycling plant in Mykolaiv will start in early 2025, and staff training will begin in autumn. It is planned to be used for the needs of two more regions: Kherson and part of Kirovohrad.

As of 1 July 2024, almost 6,000 tonnes of construction waste was generated in Mykolaiv region due to Russian shelling.

Read also the article NikVesti «Eco-reconstruction of the South: where the waste of destruction goes and how Kharkiv's example is useful».