What to do with waste tyres?

To address the recycling of the latter, the South African Tyre Manufacturers Conference (SATMC) is focusing on four areas of disposal and improvement: proper mutilation and disposal of waste tyres, reduction of materials used in tyres, sustainable sourcing of materials and a reduction in carbon emissions.

“In South Africa, the Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries (DEFF) is the custodian of the Waste Tyre Management Plan (WTMP).

“According to the WTMP, the local tyre manufacturers pay a levy of R2,30 per kilogram to fund the proper treatment and disposal of waste tyres – helping curb pollution.

“This means that in order to limit the impact on the environment that tyres that have reached their useful life, waste tyres, cause, tyre manufacturers pay a levy for DEFF to facilitate proper disposal of these waste tyres. The fundamentals of having this work done properly is critical for the tyre industry, as it ensures waste tyres are disposed of correctly to limit the impact on the environment and that they do not find a way back into the market,” explained Nduduzo Chala, managing executive of SATMC.

Waste tyres can be repurposed to manufacture usable items like dog beds, tyre ottomans and furniture, see-saws and bicycle stands.

“Goodyear is exploring using a soybean oil tread compound in four of their tyre lines to create more sustainable rubber with added traction benefits. They also use rice husk ash silicate, which helps deliver similar performance as traditional sand-based silica with less environmental impact and waste to landfills.”

Sumitomo Rubber South Africa, Goodyear, Continental and Bridgestone have initiated various programmes that will contribute to the Waste Tyre Management Plan by the DEFF.

For more information, visit https://www.satmc.co.za/ or email info@satmc.co.za.