Work going on at a road project.
Doha, Qatar: The Public Works Authority ‘Ashghal’ continues exerting significant efforts to incorporate sustainability in its strategic plan, as it has implemented various initiatives on work sites with the aim of ensuring the implementation of sustainability and environmental protection as part of its commitment to play a pivotal role in the achievement of Qatar’s Third National Development Strategy 2030-2024.
Promoting sustainability and material recycling is an essential goal within Ashghal’s Corporate Strategy 2018-2023.
As part of its efforts to improve environmental performance, Ashghal has developed and implemented its Environment and Sustainability Monthly Report in 2019. The ESMR is an innovative tool to accurately monitor and report all construction materials and carbon emissions to record them in the report.
Furthermore, Ashghal has established three strategically located construction material recycling zones, located in the North, West and South of Doha to optimize resource efficiency. These facilities became operational in 2020 for processing and recycling projects’ construction waste materials (excavated material, reclaimed asphalt, concrete, and demolition waste) instead of disposing them in landfill.
Sustainability initiatives implemented in Ashghal’s projects include the recycling and use of rubber tires as an enhanced material for bitumen use modified with crumb rubber (CRMB) which is used in asphalt mixes, where more than one thousand tonnes of this material was produced in 2023, thereby increasing the stability and durability of asphalt for longer periods of time and reducing noise on the road.
Furthermore, concrete and extracted materials of excavation and aggregate works is recycled within the construction works of the projects, as 2 million tonnes was used in base layers and 8 million tonnes used in backfill work, as well as 176 thousand tonnes was used as a material for pipe and cable insulation.
The Public Works Authority has also invested in introducing the latest sustainability techniques for road operation and maintenance to increase its longevity and reduce maintenance waste by scanning roads, bridges and drainage network using latest inspection techniques to identify any defects prior to it surfacing and conduct proactive maintenance work.
To optimize the utilization of water resources, water resulting from dewatering has been used instead of potable water in projects work, such as spraying it over sand and soil to prevent dust volatilization, which in turn contributed to reducing carbon emissions resulting from water transportation and supply and the consumption of natural resources, noting that a total of 2 million tonnes of groundwater was reclaimed and treated in Roads Projects Department projects in 2023.
Ashghal also designs, constructs, and operates 22 wastewater treatment plants distributed across the cities of Qatar. These plant have produced approximately 773 thousand m3/day of treated and produced wastewater during 2023 according to global and local specifications in this field.
In this regard, Dr. Ali Mohammed Al Marri, Manager of Quality and Safety Department at the Public Works Authority ‘Ashghal’ stated that all its programmes, projects and services aim to promote best practices, encourage innovation, and adopt new technologies with a focus on achieving environmental sustainability to achieve the sustainable development goals of Qatar National Vision 2030 aimed at balancing economic growth and environmental conservation.
He added that the most important ongoing Ashghal initiatives aimed at achieving sustainability are the recycling of structural materials such as scraped asphalt, drilling residues, demolition and utilization of alternative recycled materials such as stone aggregates and rubber tires crumb through which they are used in projects.
