OTS Executive Director Andrew Horsman
When the time comes to change the tires on your vehicle, what to do with your old rubber can sometimes appear to be a difficult decision, since traditionally, old tires were very hard to dispose of. Since 2009 however, that process has been made somewhat easier, thanks to Ontario Tire Stewardship. The non-profit corporation has been overseeing the capture and recycling of scrap tires, so they can be efficiently turned into a variety of different products, ranging from roofing materials to mulch. And in part to cover the cost of recycling, OTS has fees which are included in the cost of new tires when they are purchased in the province.
Recently, OTS announced a few changes to its fee structure for disposing of used tires. The new fees, which take effect from April 1, are designed to better reflect the true cost of recycling tires. Passenger car and light truck tires will actually see a decrease, with fees lowering from $5.84 to $5.69 per tire.
According to Andrew Horsman, executive director for OTS, the non-profit corporation recently celebrated a significant milestone — recycling its 50 millionth tire and has achieved 100 per cent diversion, in other words is able to capture 100 percent of the scrap tires produced each year for recycling.
Horsman says that there has been a big advancement in the recycling process over the last few years as operators have built or expanded new facilities and added new equipment. “Because tires aren’t designed to come apart, recycling them is a physically demanding process,” he explains “but new investment ($40 million) in Ontario has manifested itself in bigger end user markets, higher quality finished products and a growth in economic activity in the province.”
He says that despite the proliferation in tires with reinforced fibres or anti-puncture gels, there is a steady demand for them from recyclers because there’s a ready end user market.
“The market is hungry for scrap tires,” says Horsman, “and drivers are at the tip of the spear in making sure their used tires get into the system.” He says that motorists can visit rethinktires.ca to find local collectors (including auto dealers) that will take old tires of their hands for no charge.
