---

Past Issues

May 2005

---

Tyre Recycling

South Africa uses a lot of rubber and with more and more trucks being sold, the 1 million tyre carcasses produced annually looks set to increase. Many scrap tyres end up lying around waiting to ignite. A burning tyre releases extremely dangerous carbon-dioxide gasses and carbon-hydrogen substances. For this reason, the tyre industry is to be regulated via the Waste Tyre Regulation Act (WTRA), a move that will ensure a 'cradle to grave' monitoring process of all tyres, preventing rubber from combusting in uncontrolled environments and making sure waste tyres get used effectively in recycling processes. 

According to Etienne Human of the SA Tyre Manufacturers Conference, "the promulgation of the Act is hanging in mid-air because the Competitions Commission has intervened stating that it is against the Competitions Act for companies (tyre manufacturers) to speak to one another." Human explains that all the fuss is because the new legislation will create a whole new industry and government is determined to make sure it isn't monopolised by a few big players and that new entrants are allowed in. This is commendable, but the red tape and legislative delays are all too familiar. 

Says Human, "transporters will pay a levy on tyres but tyre dealers will be able to get rid of scrap tyres for free. The tyre dealer will classify the waste tyre, determining whether it gets retreaded or scrapped. Operators will return used tyres to the dealer and reclaim their levy from the SA Tyre Recycling Process Company."

According to Laurent Colrat, marketing director of Bandag SA, "the upcoming 'Green Levy' on tyre casings must be seen as an opportunity rather than a burden on the trucking industry. Not only will the South African environment benefit, but our roads will become safer as many "scrap" tyres are finding their way back onto trucks."

Bandag SA, says Colrat, is the first South African company in its field to achieve not only ISO9001 for quality standards, but also the ISO14001 - the international standard that certifies companies for their continuous environmental improvement in production processes.

"Retreading also presents many environmental advantages over new replacement tyres, saving valuable resources and reducing the impact of waste disposal on the environment," says Colrat. "The Bandag retreading method requires 70 to 100 litres less petrochemicals than is needed to manufacture a new tyre, not to mention lower energy costs. With about 1,000,000 tyre carcasses produced each year, an equivalent energy saving of 80,000 tons oil equivalent (TOE) can be achieved through the Bandag retreading programme. Retreading a typical 12R22.5 tyre saves around 75% on raw materials. The average worn tyre weighs around 50kg and by using Bandag's process, a reduction of 50,000 tons in annual waste disposal can be achieved."

Colrat explains how Bandag assists clients in optimising their tyre levy; "we select the right casings, buying premium new tyres with a higher retreadability ratio. We increase tyre performance by focusing on maintenance and extend the tyre life cycle with a multiple retreading programme that meets exact retreading procedures and standards."

When tyres have run the course of the retread lifespan, they can be utilised in a number of ways. Human says there are three kinds of recycling for waste tyres; "they can be used for embankments, reefs and playgrounds; they can be ground up into crumb for rubber mix to make retreads, bins, boots and mats etc. and they can be used as fuel in kilns that make cement."

Rubber has huge latent energy and can save on depleting fossil fuel reserves. Once the infrastructures are in place and the WTRA is implemented, power stations and paper factories may well be looking at rubber instead of coal to generate energy. Tipper operators pay heed...your load could become a whole lot more bouncy!