PRESS RELEASE
Albany County
Soil & Water Conservation District
FOR RELEASE: Immediate
Contact Name: Susan Lewis
Phone Number: 518-765-7923
Email: susan.lewis@ny.nacdnet.net
Free Tire Recycling Day Sponsored by Albany County SWCD
Utilizing NYS Conservation Project Financial Assistance funds, the Albany County Soil
and Water Conservation District is offering its Final FREE Tire Recycling event for
2009 to Albany County residents. The event will take place on November 16 th from
4pm until 6:00pm at the Albany County Department of Public Works. Only car and
light truck tires will be accepted. Registrations are required and are being accepted
until November 12th on a first come first served basis. For liability purposes anyone
who has not registered prior to the event will not be allowed to participate. Again the
District is limited to collecting 999 tires and we will not accept more than 25 tires per
household, 5 of which can be on rims. For more information please visit our website
at www.albanycounty.com/swcd or call us at 518-765-7923.
Every day, millions of vehicles are on the road. Of these millions, each vehicle travels
an estimated 12,000 to 15,000 miles annually. With the average automobile using four
tires, we “burn” a lot of rubber every year.
In 2005, 290 million new tires were manufactured and 259 million tires were deemed
scrap material. While the amount of waste from used tires is daunting, the
opportunities for reusing these materials are just as numerous.
One of most important aspects of recycling and reusing waste tires is keeping them
out of landfills. With their rounded, hollow shape, tires quickly consume a landfill’s
most precious commodity—space. Additionally, stored tires pose an enormous
environmental risk if they are ignited:



Tire fires can burn for months (or years).
They are difficult to extinguish.
They can release harmful toxins into the air, soil and water.
In addition, stored tires can be a breeding ground for disease vectors such as
mosquitoes and rodents. By keeping tires out of landfills, we leave room for other
wastes, reduce the risk of potentially dangerous fires and help prevent the spread of
vermin.
Another important benefit of recycling and reusing tires is a reduction in energy
consumption and an increase in energy recovery. On average, 22 gallons of oil are
required to create a new truck tire. However, to retread a tire (a process in which a
new tread is applied to a used tire casing), only seven gallons of oil are required.
Retreading a tire costs anywhere from 30 to 70 percent less than manufacturing a new
tire, thereby reducing the cost to the consumer. Tires also can be used in place of
fossil fuels in some manufacturing processes, reducing consumption of these fuels
and utilizing energy already stored in the tire.
Additionally, recycling and reusing tires helps to beautify our neighborhoods and cities.
Rather than being tossed in empty lots or left on the side of the road, tires can be
reused in a number of ways from playground equipment to planters. They also can be
used to create quieter highways through rubberized asphalt or maintain a landscape
through erosion control. By creatively reusing tires, we can create something from
nothing - form and function from waste. (Courtesy of Earth911.com).
######