The installation of an environmentally sustainable acoustic wall is set to reduce traffic noise from the Prices Freeway for Werribee’s Riverwalk estate residents.

The 1.6km wall will contain panels made using about 75 per cent recycled plastic, collected from homes across Melbourne that would otherwise end up in landfill. Sound Insulation Rubber MLV Sheet

Approximately 61 tonnes of recycled plastic will be used to make the panels, equivalent to the volume of plastic that about 15,500 homes would dispose of in an average year.

The first section of the wall is currently under construction, and the second stage is expected to be completed by the end of 2023.

The acoustic panels are all manufactured locally at a facility in Melbourne, and the design for the wall panels is inspired by the nearby You Yangs ranges, which rise above the Werribee Plain.

Development Victoria Group head property development, Penny Forrest, said that this style of recycled molded plastic acoustic walls has been used successfully along many busy international and local freeways.

“This acoustic wall will be a lasting reminder to the community of the importance of recycling, as these panels can again be recycled at the end of their lifecycle,” Ms Forrest said.

“Similar walls have been built on the Mordialloc Bypass, and Peninsula Link in Victoria, and have also been used in Sydney, Adelaide and countries such as the Netherlands.

“As well as this wall, we have been able to retain the majority of the trees bordering the freeway, providing an additional barrier between the homes and traffic.”

Riverwalk is a partnership development between Melbourne Water and Development Victoria.

Sliding Acoustic Panel Once complete, Riverwalk will feature about 2600 homes, two schools, a town centre, 20 hectares of open space and three signalised intersections to improve local traffic flows.