Authority Aims for Carbon Neutral Playground
Charles Lawrence, the chairman of Playtop, raised the issue of
working more closely together on projects and highlighted the
work that Playtop’s sister company, Charles Lawrence
International, undertakes in the field of recycling commercial
vehicle tyres. It is granulate produced from these tyres that is
used in Playtop’s surfaces, making them a great example of a
sustainable building product.
Charles said; “I asked Nottinghamshire County
Council to let us have their old commercial vehicle tyres and in
return we would recycle them and supply them back as
impact-absorbing play surfaces for Nottinghamshire County Council
playgrounds.
“They loved the idea – using the
council’s old tyres to create safer surfacing for children
within Nottinghamshire.”
Then in January of this year the ideal project came up and
Playtop was invited by the council to discuss a project planned at
Bowbridge Primary School – a school just down the road from
Playtop in Newark. The council plans to construct a flagship
building using sustainable and recycled materials. The long term
goal is to minimise the environmental impact of the project and
ensure its footprint is carbon neutral.
Playtop’s use of recycled materials, its locality to the
school and its vast experience will help bring the council even
closer to achieving its aims. Much of the Playtop surfacing that
will be laid at Bowbridge Primary School will have a recycled
content of 93%. Also the local sourcing of materials cuts down on
emissions from plant and vehicles that will be used to transport
the materials to site.
In addition, Playtop has called on its partnership with Nike,
the global sportswear company, to add a further environmental
angle, as recycled trainers will also be incorporated into the
surface. Every square metre of Playtop which incorporates Nike
Grind contains rubber from approximately 20 pairs of trainers and
one commercial vehicle tyre. Using rubber granulate from tyres and
trainers in this way prevents it ending up in already overflowing
landfill sites.
Cristina Gonzalez-Longo, Nottinghamshire County Council’s
architect for the project, said; “The Council has long
advocated the procurement of recycled materials and it is one of
the few local authorities that has a dedicated Sustainability
team.
“What appeals about Playtop is the fact that it is made
from nearly 100% recycled materials and so therefore fits nicely
within the Council’s environmental agenda.”
Playtop’s partnership with NikeGO, Nike’s corporate
social responsibility programme, also provides a fund for giving
back to communities in deprived areas. As Playtop is a member of
the scheme and the materials used will be from sustainable
resources, the NikeGO fund will be contributing 50% of the value of
the play surface.
For more information relating to Playtop visit www.playtop.com