ECCOpave recycles asphalt shingles in Calgary. Since humble beginnings in 2009, we have now become one of the largest recycling initiatives in the history of Canada. ECCOpave is a leader in asphalt shingle recycling and a pioneer in green business. It is our goal to provide benefits for our clients, the environment and the whole city of Calgary through excellence in recycling.

Every roof “houses” two to three tonnes of asphalt shingle. These shingles are replaced every 18 to 25 years, and this adds up quickly. During roof replacements, Calgary’s roofing companies generate more than 30,000 tonnes of tear-off shingle every year. This is one of the largest waste streams in the entire city. Diverting asphalt shingles from landfills will reduce our city’s annual waste production by up to 7%, while saving up to 60,000 barrels of oil annually.

Recycled Asphalt Shingle (known as RAS) can be used in the production of hot-mix asphalt — what our roads are made of. But first it has to be recycled. This involves collecting the tear-off shingles, pulling out all the other roofing debris that comes along with them and then grinding them to very precise specifications so that the roadbuilders can use the end product. It has been a long and arduous endeavour establishing this recycling process here in Calgary — the first of its kind in Canada — but the result has been a win-win all around. As recently as 2008 all of the tear-off shingle generated in Calgary went straight into the landfill to be buried. Today ECCOpave is recycling over 50% of this shingle. Our goal is 100%: every last tonne!