On Friday the 23^rd of July, Prof. Di Mino, Dr. Acuto and Dr. Dunn, of the RE-MED project team based at the University of Palermo (Italian partner) undertook a technical visit to Calcestruzzi Ericina Libera, a plant which produces aggregates from construction and demolition waste.

Ing. Gisella Mammo Zagarella, the technical supervisor of the plant was kind enough to dedicate her time to describe the history and the current goals of the recycling plant, along with a thorough discussion on the various obstacles in the way.

Calcestruzzi Ericina Libera takes waste from recently demolished buildings, which would otherwise end in landfills, and gives them a new life as conditioned aggregates ready to be used in new concrete mixtures. This plant is the only of its kind in Sicily and is capable of processing around 100 tonnes of construction and demolition waste per day with an efficiency of around 97% i.e. 97% of the waste received is processed, sorted and separated for use in new applications.  

The contribution that Calcestruzzi Ericina Libera makes towards a circular economic model is of great interest and their expertise in this field is invaluable to our researchers and partners within the RE-MED project.