Coffee grounds bring green boost to local road upgrade

LOCAL coffee drinkers have given a green boost to the Barwon Heads Road Upgrade.

More than 22 tonnes of spent coffee grounds have been mixed with topsoil to support the growth of 118,000 native plants along Settlement and Barwarre Road.

The environmental project is courtesy of upgrade construction partner Decmil and social enterprise Reground.

Reground collected spent grounds from cafes in Geelong and Melbourne to contribute to the project.

The Barwon Heads Upgrade was Reground’s first project outside of Melbourne.

Reground operations manager Annaliese Lawry said the organisation were thrilled to play a role in promoting a circular economy through waste minimisation projects.

“Reground has been proud to partner with MRPV on the Barwon Heads Road Upgrade, demonstrating at scale the real-world value of organic resources collected via our hyper-local model.

“We’re excited to identify new ways for community-led, circular solutions to transform industries.”

Decmil environment and sustainability manager Dharsh Krishnan said it was a pleasure to work alongside Reground on the project.

“Incorporating recycled materials and sustainable processes was always a priority for our work on the Barwon Heads Road Upgrade.

“Our partnership with Reground diverted food waste from landfill.

“We look forward to partnering again in the future.”

Major Roads Projects Victoria program director, Tim Price added his pleasure at the upgrade getting its own green boost.

“It was great working with Decmil and Reground to deliver this innovative initiative.

“Protecting the environment and supporting sustainability were important objectives of the Barwon Heads Road Upgrade.”

The Barwon Heads Road Upgrade was completed in July, six months ahead of schedule.

The upgraded section of road is set to cater for 44,000 daily journeys by 2031.

More information is available at bigbuild.vic.gov.au/projects/mrpv/barwon-heads-road-upgrade