Wonder Reef includes nine buoyant sculptures, each anchored to the seabed by heavy reef foundations made using Earth Friendly Concrete produced exclusively by Wagners. This reduces the embodied carbon footprint of the reef.
Earth Friendly Concrete is more sustainable than traditional concrete, with around 80% less embodied CO2 saving 250kg of CO2 per m3 poured. It is made from a binder consisting of industrial waste products, ground granulated blast furnace slag and pulverised fly ash with no Portland Cement. Earth Friendly Concrete is the world’s only zero-cement concrete that has been proven at scale. It is also offers improved durability, lower shrinkage and higher flexural tensile strength.
The Earth Friendly Concrete on the reef project will save nearly 100 tonnes of embodied carbon compared to traditional cement.
Wagners is now formally launching Earth Friendly Concrete into the UK, in partnership with London-based Capital Concrete. So far, 900m³ of Earth Friendly Concrete has been used on the HS2 project for the temporary works piling mats and 2km³ for haul roads and crane bases, saving 725,000kg of embodied carbon to date.
Wagners Earth Friendly Concrete general manager Jason Zafiriadis said: “Earth Friendly Concrete is extremely versatile, and we are delighted to be formally launching our innovative product in the UK. Not only does Earth Friendly Concrete dramatically reduce embodied carbon, offering genuine environmental benefits, it also re-uses industrial waste and adds to the circular economy.
“Earth Friendly Concrete has been proven at scale on real-life projects across the globe from innovative projects like the Wonder Reef to large infrastructure projects. Our technology can easily integrate into existing concrete supply chains, and we are building and expanding the business in London to meet the needs of projects that want to secure a sustainable future.”
The AUS$5 million attraction, jointly funded between the city and the Queensland Government, forms part of a 10-year vision by the City of Gold Coast. It is expected to lure about 16,000 visitors to the city each year and more than AUS$32 million in tourism investment in the first ten years.
Wonder Reef results from an exciting collaboration between the City of Gold Coast and global providers of engineered reefs Subcon Blue Solutions and large scale Australian sculptural artist Daniel Templeman.
The nine buoyant ‘sculptural reef flutes’ are individually tethered to the seafloor by 62 tonnes reinforced Earth Friendly Concrete and steel pyramids.
Subcon Founder, Matthew Allen said: “Subcon carefully selected Wagners EFC because it is vitally important that industry adopts technology that reduces their carbon footprint. Wagners EFC enables Subcon to create massive reefs that are more durable, have lower embodied carbon and are better for the environment."
The sculptural reef flutes stand up to 22m above the ocean floor with foundations – all designed to support an abundance of fish and serve as sustainable habitats for a diverse range of marine flora and fauna.
Wonder Reef is destined to become a world-class dive site, located approximately 2.5km offshore from Philip Park, The Spit, when it opens to the public in early 2022.
