Rubber

Vehicle Tires

Almost 60 percent of rubber consumed globally is used by the tire manufacturing industry, and the disposal of rubber tires used in automobiles and other vehicles is a serious problem in much of the world. In the United States in 2003, 290 million scrap tires were disposed of, constituting 2 percent of total solid waste. Whole tires are problematic in landfills because of the large amount of empty space contained within a tire, which not only increases the volume of space required but can also trap gases and offers breeding grounds for rodents and (if filled with water) mosquitoes. For this reason, tires are sometimes shredded before being added to landfills. As of 2003, 38 U.S. states banned whole tires from landfills and 11 banned all tires from landfills, while 35 states allowed only shredded tires to be placed in landfills. Aggressive cleanup and scrap tire management programs in many U.S. states have substantially reduced the number of scrap tires in landfills and other stockpiles, from 700–800 million in 1994 to 275 million in 2004.

In many states, tires are classified as either hazardous waste or special waste, in either case requiring a permit to dispose of them. This has led to illegal dumping, which creates many hazards, including ground and water pollution and creation of breeding grounds for pests. Incineration of discarded tires is not practical because when burned, tires break down into hazardous compounds, including oil, heavy metals, and gases: a passenger tire typically produces more than two gallons of oil when burned. This oil may seep into the ground and require environmental cleanup.

Tire fires, although relatively rare, pose significant environmental risk by releasing pollutants such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, benzene, styrene, phenols, and butadiene into the air. Tire fires can also be quite difficult and expensive to extinguish and may require evacuation of surrounding communities. For instance, a 1983 tire fire in Rhinehart, Virginia, burned for almost nine months, depositing air pollution in three states, polluting water sources with lead and arsenic, and requiring cleanup as a [Page 765]Superfund site. A 1999 tire fire in Westley, California, required intervention by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and took 30 days to extinguish at a cost of about $3.5 million.

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