Owens Corning begins asphalt shingle recycling

Owens Corning announced through its roofing business that it will provide a new program that simplifies recycling asphalt shingles for its preferred roofing contractors. The company is the first roofing manufacturer to connect contractors with convenient recycling facilities through a national strategic alliance.

Based on a pilot conducted in Indiana, Owens Corning will roll out the program nationally, starting in the Midwest. As part of the program, contractors pledge to recycle their shingle tear-offs. In addition to keeping shingle waste out of landfills, contractors benefit by promoting sustainable business practices to homeowners.

“While the technology exists to recycle asphalt shingles, we are making it efficient and cost-effective for our contractors,” said Sheree Bargabos, president of Owens Corning Roofing and Asphalt, LLC. “This program makes recycling easy, and provides our contractor network with an opportunity to clearly differentiate themselves by providing a complete roofing system including a sustainable end-of-life recycling option for old shingles.”

Owens Corning is working with Heritage Environmental Services, a privately-held environmental services company. Heritage will provide drop-off centers that will recycle and process shingle tear-offs.

“Millions of tons of asphalt roofing shingles are sent to landfills every year, wasting valuable resources such as asphalt and aggregate,” said Bill McDaniel, president and chief executive officer, Heritage Environmental Services LLC.

Recycling glass-based asphalt shingles is a cost-effective alternative to producing new asphalt and helps preserve resources. Last year the Asphalt Institute estimated that the asphalt from recycled shingles has a potential value of more than $1 billion, which is variable upon the price of asphalt.