Stribling Reserve Pavilion upgrade showcases recycled plastic decking and seating
Project background
The Surf Coast Shire Council is committed to a circular economy. They have a target to send zero recoverable waste to landfill and are focused on improving the re-use of resources. The Stribling Reserve Pavilion in Lorne was a high-profile redevelopment project that provided an ideal opportunity to use recycled products to support the circular economy.
This project was led by a Project Control Group (PCG) which comprised council, community and sporting club representatives. The PCG unanimously supported incorporating recycled products into the project, which also had strong community support.
Recycled composite decking and seating at the pavilion greatly reduces maintenance requirements including the use of toxic stains and oils that would have been used on equivalent timber products. The recycled products divert waste from landfill and provide greater longevity compared to their traditional timber alternatives.
The council is hoping to demonstrate and realise the ongoing benefits to reduced maintenance and renewal costs over the life of the products by incorporating recycled materials as standard practice in future infrastructure projects.
This project was supported by Sustainability Victoria’s Sustainable Infrastructure Fund on behalf of the Victorian Government.
Procurement information
Procurement was undertaken by the contractor for products as specified by the PCG.
Installation and product performance
The installation of these products was straightforward. The products met building surveyor requirements for slip ratings and Bushfire Attack Level ratings, demonstrating that composite recycled/plastic style timbers are suitable products for commercial and coastal projects.
The Surf Coast Shire Council staff were happy with the products used in this project and anticipate that the decking and seating will be weather-resistant and lower maintenance in comparison to the upkeep associated with conventional timbers. Council staff and contractors now have a greater awareness and confidence in using these products.
“Using products like these helps build the market for recycled products and supports manufacturers who are entering into this space. Recycled materials can also present other benefits such as enhanced performance and longevity, reducing the ongoing maintenance and renewal requirements throughout the product life cycle.”
Life-cycle monitoring and maintenance
The new products will be monitored through the council’s regular asset assessment process, and any damage or feedback reported by the community will be recorded through a customer request process.
The useful life of the recycled products will be assessed compared to traditional products, which will inform future decisions under the council’s asset management program. The results of this program will also be shared among council officers to encourage further uptake of recycled materials in future projects.
Gallery
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Buy Recycled Stribling Reserve Seating Lorne Video
Presented by:Paul Elshaug, Recreation Development Officer, Surf Coast Shire Council
Pete Spring, Chairman, Stribling Reserve Community Asset Committee
[The visuals during this video are of each speaker speaking to camera together with vision of the exterior of the Stribling Reserve pavilions, fields and seating area]
Paul Elshaug:
The project we have here at Stribling Reserve, the wonderful reserve in Lorne is the redevelopment of a netball pavilion and also a main pavilion which we call the community pavilion. We took the opportunity to incorporate recycled products into the exterior components of the building which ended up being decking and some of the fantastic seating I’m sitting on at the moment.
So, we were really fortunate to secure SV funding for the recycled components into this project. The products we used in the project were a mix between Modwood decking and also APR composite board for the seating. We originally started with 300 lineal metres of the APR composite for this seating here but there was a fantastic effort from the community to fundraise for two extra sections of the terraced seating which has gone in recently. So that’s now 900 lineal metres of that product which is excellent.
Pete Spring:
The project had funding for one bay of seating but it proved so popular that it was an easy task for us as a committee to initiate another fundraising project and raise the funds necessary for the extra two bays of seating which were installed here the week before the first home game and we received a lot of praise for how it looked and how comfortable they were.
Paul Elshaug:
The main reason we used recycled materials is we wanted this facility to be a showcase for this community but also for the shire. When the opportunity came up to source funding for additional recycled content components we really wanted to look at how we could do that and the most logical elements were those exterior to the building.
Pete Spring:
The main reason for using recycled materials where we could was with a view to reduce maintenance in the coming years. It’s always been a problem particularly with timber products being used outdoors in what is a fairly harsh environment close to the sea and we wanted to ensure that we had a product that looked good and was easy to maintain.
Paul Elshaug:
I would say to anybody if you’re thinking about using recycled content products absolutely don’t just think about it, do it. Work with your environmental sustainability team within council or any other experts you can gather, talk to the suppliers, find out about what the products are, what the benefits are and with all that information the advantages are clear and you can make the right choice.
Pete Spring:
We have two other developments in the pipeline at the moment around the netball pavilion and around the cricket practice nets and we’ll definitely be ensuring that we’ll be using recycled products where we could.
Paul Elshaug:
The fact that we’ve had such a positive experience with these products in this project and that is showcasing these products within the organisation and within the community I don’t think it will be long before we’re using these products again in any of our projects.
§(Music Playing)§
[Closing visual of slide with text saying ‘Sustainability Victoria’, ‘Victoria State Government’, ‘sustainability.vic.gov.au’, ‘Authorised by Sustainability Victoria, 321 Exhibition St, Melbourne’]
[End of Transcript]
More information
For more information about this project, email sustainableprocurement@sustainability.com.au.