• What to do with the approximately 50 million m3 of sediment recovered each year in France, in ports (50 million m3) and in rivers (1.3 million m3)?

  • The new regulations, scheduled for 2025, will make the reprocessing of this waste weight crucial.

  • An environmental puzzle which, fortunately, finds industrial solutions in the circular economy.

Flirting is good, but what do we do afterwards?

This is the question that arises concerning the sediments recovered, each year in France, in ports (50 million m3) and in rivers (1.3 million m3).

Because the new regulations, scheduled for 2025, will make it crucial to reprocess this waste weight.

An environmental puzzle which, fortunately, finds solutions.

Some have been tested for twenty years by the Eco-transition Deployment Center (CD2E), located in Pas-de-Calais, in Loos-en-Gohelle.

At a time when the price of raw materials is starting to soar, the constraint of reconverting sometimes polluted sludge can quickly become an asset.

How to turn black into green

For two days, Tuesday and Wednesday, the national foundation for the recovery of sediments, which is held in Lille, in the North, must present various solutions which are part of this "commitment to green growth".

Or how to transform black into green.

Because cleaning out sediments is an obligation to maintain economic activity in ports, canals or other hydraulic dams.

But what to do with this waste, the volumes of which are colossal, the largest after that of building and public works?

Until now, 90% of the total volume of extracted marine sediments are discharged into the open sea, "causing disastrous consequences on marine ecosystems", deplores the CD2E.

“Before, we also spread this in the fields, explains Cyril Scribot, circular economy consultant at CD2E.

With the new law, these discharges of polluted dredging residues will soon be prohibited.

However, recycling is still sometimes problematic for certain materials such as heavy metals, for example.

“Today's solutions must not become tomorrow's problems, in particular by polluting groundwater,” he stresses.

Save raw materials

Thus, technical tests are continuously carried out within the CD2E in order to “follow the path of pollution”.

An example: artificially aging certain recycled products to check their degree of contamination over time.

This know-how thus makes it possible to produce cement, concrete or asphalt based on cleaned sediments.

"We already include 10% to 20% sediment in our products", welcomes Francis Grenier, president of Nord Asphalte, a northern SMI invested in this experimental project for four years.

But the manufacturer hopes to go further in recycling.

“If we manage to perfectly characterize the elements contained in the sediments, to draw up their exact DNA, we could create a stock exchange for the purchase of these materials, making it possible to save raw materials from quarries.

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Millions of tonnes of sludge and recovered waste: the potential is enormous.

With colossal economic and ecological stakes.

The Douai School of Mines, in the North, is already working on this characterization project.

“The soaring prices of raw materials prove us right before the hour, assures Francis Grenier.

Thanks to sediments, we will be, tomorrow, less dependent on the market and the operators of materials.

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  • Planet

  • Waste

  • Lille

  • Hauts-de-France

  • Recycling

  • Industry

  • Economy

  • circular economy