Carbon storing asphalt on Cumbria’s A689: performance and carbon notes for engineers
Reviewed by Tom Sullivan
First reported on The Construction Index
30 Second Briefing
Carbon storing asphalt has been used on a 1.5-mile section of the A689 between Harbut Lodge and Alston War Memorial, where Heidelberg Materials UK laid 1,150 tonnes of its CarbonLock biogenic asphalt under a 2024 highway framework for Westmorland and Furness Council. CarbonLock incorporates biogenic material in the binder to absorb and permanently store CO₂, delivering a reported 21% carbon reduction versus standard hot-mix asphalt, even when the pavement is recycled. The mix was produced at the Keepershield plant near Hexham and placed using Ammann’s eABG 4820 electric paver, rated to lay up to 1,200 tonnes per charge.
Technical Brief
- CarbonLock’s biogenic binder stores atmospheric CO₂ over the pavement life, remaining sequestered through subsequent recycling cycles.
- Tight programme constraints required completion without delaying further scheduled works on the A689 corridor.
- Regional general manager Adrian Stubbs framed the trial as the first CarbonLock use under this framework.
- All 1,150 tonnes were batched at Heidelberg Materials’ Keepershield asphalt plant near Hexham for this job.
- Ammann’s eABG 4820, described as the largest electric-drive paver currently on the market, was deployed.
- Using an electric paver targeted emissions from construction plant, not just embodied carbon in the surfacing material.
Our Take
Heidelberg Materials UK is emerging as a recurring low‑carbon materials supplier in our infrastructure coverage, with this Cumbria asphalt trial following its evoZero carbon‑captured cement and low‑carbon asphalt deployment on Heathcote Avenue in Redbridge (29 May 2026).
The 21% carbon reduction on the 1.5mi A689 section gives Westmorland and Furness Council a quantified performance reference, which could be leveraged when procuring future resurfacing frameworks similar to the 35,000t asphalt agreement Heidelberg Materials UK holds with North Yorkshire Highways (13 July 2026).
Prepared by collating external sources, AI-assisted tools, and Geomechanics.io’s proprietary mining database, then reviewed for technical accuracy & edited by our geotechnical team.
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