News: Tire Recycling & Pyrolysis

Tire Stewardship BC – a not-for-profit group dedicated to the collection and recycling of scrap tires in British Columbia – announced that it will provide an annual grant of $30,000 to Ocean Legacy Foundation (OLF) for a period of five years. This funding will support OLF in their efforts to conduct clean-up expeditions for scrap tires across British Columbia, with the aim of diverting waste from landfills and promoting circularity in the waste sector.

The Tire and Rubber Association of Canada (TRAC) the U.S. Tire Manufacturers Association (USTMA) together with Host Sponsor, Divert NS, will be hosting the 2023 Rubber Recycling Symposium, held on October 4-5 at the Lord Nelson Hotel; Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. Register for TRAC's 2023 Rubber Recycling Symposium, and review available Sponsorship and Exhibition opportunities! Early Bird discount will end on July 28, so Register Now!

Pyrum Innovations AG (Pyrum), a pioneering company that recycles end-of-life tires sustainably with its globally patented, unique pyrolysis technology, and the bicycle tire manufacturer Ralf Bohle GmbH (Schwalbe brand) have developed the world's first bicycle tire made from recycled tires. Pyrum's Green Marathon uses 100% recycled carbon black (rCB), which is a direct product of the recycling process and replaces fossil carbon black. The production of the innovative bicycle tire saves more than a third of CO2eQ compared to the previous model. To determine the CO2 savings, a detailed Product Carbon Footprint (PCF) of both models was calculated and evaluated according to the current IPCC AR6 standard (GWP 100, excl. biogenic CO2).

TNU (Tratamiento Neumáticos Usados) – a Spanish EPR agency for end-of-life tires – explains with its new informative campaign "Did you know that...?" the wide and innovative applications offered by the recycling of end-of-life tires. The recent TNU’s article emphasizes the importance of collecting and recycling used tires instead of leaving them in nature, as they take 1,000 years to decompose. The most environmentally friendly option is to reuse the tires for manufacturing new ones. If that is not possible, recycling plants extract and separate the different components of the tires, such as rubber, textile fiber, and steel, for recovery and repurposing.

SIGNUS – the Spanish end-of-life tire management authority – registered for the first time with the Spanish Office of Climate Change the Carbon Footprint generated by its activities in 2017. It became the first extended producer responsibility collective system to do so in a verified and certified manner by AENOR. The Carbon Footprint Registry is voluntary and collects the efforts of Spanish companies, administrations, and other organizations in calculating, reducing, and offsetting the greenhouse gas emissions generated by their activities.

The Association of Natural Rubber Producing Countries (ANRPC) releases the Monthly NR Statistical Report, May 2023. According to ANRPC, as the tapping activities resumed, the global output increased by 0.3% in May to 1.006 million tons. Despite sluggish output growth, global NR consumption increased by 3.5% year-on-year to 1.272 million tons.

Svensk Däckåtervinning AB (SDAB) – the Swedish Tire Recycler Association responsible for tyre recycling in Sweden – has recently opened a tire recycling plant on the premises of Tekniska verken in Gärstad, Linköping. According to SDAB, this facility, covering four hectares, will process up to half of the annual 90,000 tons of end-of-life tires collected. The plant plays a vital role in increasing material recycling, creating new applications, and enhancing the value of tire raw materials.

Bandag – Bridgestone’s tread manufacturing and retread business for truck tires – has officially been recognized as a Circular Economy Collaborator by Tyre Stewardship Australia (TSA). The Bandag process is valuable in driving sustainable outcomes for used tires, by extending their life, and contributing to TSA's vision of a circular economy for end-of-life tires and tire recovery in Australia. Bandag's retreaded tires not only reduce the need for raw materials by extending the life of the tire, but also use valuable material from end-of-life tires and rubber waste to create the new treads.

EC is carrying out unannounced inspections at the premises of companies active in the synthetic turf industry in several Member States. The Commission has concerns that the inspected companies may have violated EU antitrust rules that prohibit cartels and restrictive business practices. The Commission officials were accompanied by their counterparts from the national competition authorities of the Member States where the inspections were carried out.