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Tarmac mix may change if it stays as hot

IF GUERNSEY continues to get near to temperature records, the local Tarmac ‘recipe’ might have to change, Ronez general manager and director Steve Roussel has said.

Seb Sharp and Dave Williams working on resurfacing Camp Du Roi. (Picture by Sophie Rabey, 31060284)
Seb Sharp and Dave Williams working on resurfacing Camp Du Roi. (Picture by Sophie Rabey, 31060284) / Guernsey Press

He was speaking after a temperature of 34.2C was recorded this week – just 0.1C degree off the highest ever measured in the island.

Guernsey, like the UK, is facing the challenges of a warming climate. The country has faced problems this week with buckling railways lines and melting roads.

Mr Roussel said Guernsey could face similar issues.

‘From time to time when the weather gets really hot, there is a risk of Tarmac softening,’ he said.

‘In the past in Guernsey we have not so much seen melting, but softening, of asphalt. Generally the older Tarmac gets, the stiffer it gets. So newly-laid Tarmac is more likely to soften in the heat.’

Mr Roussel said he would most expect to see Tarmac softening in areas of heavy traffic, such as the seafront or the Bridge.

‘If there are concerns about Tarmac softening, layers of dust can be put on top of the roads to prevent this,’ he said.

Mr Roussel said this week’s temperatures were not yet a cause for concern.

‘It should be fine up to about 35C,’ he said.

Mr Roussel said Ronez may have to think about adjusting its Tarmac recipe temperatures in the future.

Tarmac is a mixture of aggregates, dust and bitumen. In hotter countries, they adjust dust levels and use stiffer bitumen to deal with the heat.

Flights were briefly suspended at London Luton Airport after a small section of the runway was lifted by the 37C heat.

The runway at Brize Norton, an RAF air base in Oxfordshire, also reportedly melted.

But Guernsey Airport had no problems.

Guernsey Ports chief operating officer Ross Coppolo said the airport had not yet experienced any issues with the heat.

‘We carry out a number of visual inspections of all of the aerodrome’s paved surfaces on a daily basis and have not experienced any defects caused by the recent high temperatures,’ he said.

He added that there was no definitive temperature at which problems would expect to emerge.

According to the AA, the road surface temperature can be as much as 20C hotter than the air temperature, meaning 35C heat could cause the Tarmac to reach 55C.

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