In the State of Oregon, tires are forbidden from entering the waste stream (landfill) by state statute. In order to accommodate this law here in Douglas County, tires can be taken to the transfer stations in Roseburg and Reedsport for recycling. A small fee applies for each tire. This is charged to cover the County’s expense to recycle. Better yet, allow your tire supplier to take them back for recycling when your new tires are installed.
It is also important to note that for generations, folks held onto tires for burning. Grandpa would always place several old tires coated in diesel fuel at the center of his burn pile every year. As effective as it was, it was a very dirty, polluting process that is now illegal. In Oregon it is only legal to burn paper, yard debris, and wood with proper permits.
Recycling tires is something that everyone should do as there are many negatives associated with not recycling tires including an ugly landscape, pollution, and disease. However, there are quite a few steps that can be instituted prior to recycling that will save you money in addition to keeping Douglas County clean:·Keep a proper tire pressure. Having improperly inflated tires is a huge cause of tire damage. It can cause irregular wear as well as decreased gas mileage.
·Avoid braking and accelerating excessively.
·Keep on schedule with your tire rotation and check your wheel balance and alignment often.
·Inspect your tires at least once a month. Check for uneven wearing, cracks, splits in the tread, or other signs of damage.
·Overloading your vehicle can cause more wear on your tires, as well.
·Avoid driving on rough roads and over potholes or curbs.
·Replace your tires once the tread is down to 1/16th of an inch. Do not let a salesman convince you to get rid of them sooner unless there is an added, important reason!
·Just because you have one or two bad tires, it does not mean that you need an entirely new set of four tires.·Use retreads. They are just as safe as new tires.
Now that you know at little bit more about prevention, let us talk about recycling tires.
Interestingly enough, recycling the rubber from scrap tires was very common until the 1960s when the practice began to die off. Because it became easier to make synthetic rubber, people found it less important to recycle their tires. Recycling tires also became more difficult when steel belted tires became popular. Fortunately, the recycling of tires has increased tremendously within the last decade as people have started to see the problems associated with scrap tires and new opportunities for reuse have developed.
What are the problems that arise when tires are not recycled?
For one thing, discarded tires are an eyesore. But even properly disposed of scrap tires can create problems. A tire dump is a known breeding ground for mosquitoes, considered to be a disease “vector”. Mosquito borne diseases are more prevalent around properties with numerous tires stockpiled on them. I have personally witnessed farmland with over 2,000 tires on them right here in Douglas County!
Tire pile fires are a huge environmental problem. Such a fire can go on burning for months, and while it is burning, it sends up a huge plume of black smoke, full of toxic chemicals and pollutants. The oily runoff, full of toxic chemicals caused by tire fires can make its way into surrounding water supplies.
Recycling tires is a very important step toward lessening the negative impacts that tires can have on the environment (but remember: reducing unnecessary use of tires is the best way to trash our county less).
What can recycled tires be used for?
Since recycled tire rubber can be cheaper than making new rubber for some products, it is used for many things such as an asphalt additive, mulch groundcover, road cone bases, and rigid plastics. When crumb rubber is mixed with asphalt, the asphalt is less likely to crack. And you have probably seen recycled rubber padding the ground beneath children’s playgrounds, as well. It appears that recycling tires can create safer environments, too!
The number one reuse opportunity for tires is conversion to energy. Most tires collected for recycling are delivered to cement kilns to be burned in order to fire their industrial processes. Last year Douglas County alone sent away 713 tons of tires for recycling.
Remember by Reducing, Reusing, and Recycling together we can “Trash Douglas County Less”!
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