Industry news from Australia's used tyre recovery and recycling association, includes:

• Supply chain improving
• TDF offshore demand rising
• More work to be done tackling rogue retailers dumping tyres in the environment
• Crumb rubber demand small improvements
• OTR disposal continues to need work

ATRA: Tyre Stewardship Australia data needs to be questioned

https://www.insidewaste.com.au/atra-tyre-stewardship-australia-tsa-data-needs-to-be-questioned/ Tyre Stewardship Australia (TSA) has released revised used tyre recovery data as part of it efforts for Federal intervention in the market. The Australian Tyre Recyclers Association (ATRA) is concerned to ensure this data is well understood, according Robert Kelman, Executive Officer ATRA. “All recycling sectors have issues that need to be resolved,” said Kelman, “and ATRA is supportive of resolving those issues within the used tyre recovery sector that require resolution, including; – capturing free riders, – banning landfill disposal, – better capturing waste tracking data, – enforcing the federal export ban on whole baled tyres, – improved governance of the existing TSA and; – reducing the ongoing legal disposal in-pit of mining (OTR) tyres “It’s truly shocking we only recover 13 of the massive OTR market and bury the rest. “However, TSA’s revised data actually shows there has been no change in the collection rate of used passenger, truck and bus tyres, though it appears there was during the period, an unacceptable increase in the landfilling of some used tyres.” He said the ATRA would support state bans on the landfilling of all used tyres; these tyres should go to a beneficial use. But to lump this (unfortunately) legal disposal into the data as TSA has and suggest all these tyres are being ‘disbursed’ into the environment does not help in advancing the broader policy debate and resolving the issues that need to be resolved. “Australia has a highly functional and well capitalised free market for used tyre collection and recycling; at 98 per cent collection there is no apparent ‘market failure’ that would warrant the Federal government intervening in the collection market,” said Kelman “Let’s fix the things that need fixing. But the proposal from TSA to intervene in the market, creating a full command and control EPR scheme, setting the prices and the geographies recyclers can operate in, as they do in British Columbia and Italy, would appear to be an overreach.”

New report demonstrates greenhouse gas benefits of Tyre Derived Fuel A new report for ATRA demonstrates that replacing one tonne of black coal with tyre derived fuel (TDF) can save 1.05tonnes of CO2-e. The report and accompanying media release can be found here

ATRA has advised its members of the validity of a price increase for the collection and recycling of end of life tyres to offset a collapse in the offshore market for rubber products. The following market alert has been sent to retailers and other stakeholders.

More information available here: http://www.epa.vic.gov.au/about-us/news-centre/news-and-updates/news/2016/march/02/news-item

New waste tyre regulations set to commence in Victoria. Licences required for any site holding more than 5000EPU’s. Details of the new licence scheme available here:

Collection – Tyres can be collected from any location in Australia. Recyclers charge a small fee to tyre retailers to collect, transport, process and finally export this waste product. This fee is, in 80% of cases, the only income to recyclers and the cost of rest of the processes as outlined come out of this fee. Manufacturing – ATRA members create useful products from old tyres preventing a valuable resource being dumped in landfill. Products and Applications – Crumb; for Adhesives, Asphalt, Explosives, Playgrounds, Sportsgrounds. Shred; for further processing to crumb or alternative fuels. Civil Products; for retaining walls, road construction, erosion protection. ATRA does not support the export of while baled tyres out of Australia as these products represent a biosecurity risk to receiving countries and in the vast majority of cases go to unsustainable and highly polluting pyrolysis operations in countries like Malaysia. More information is available at the Sustainability section of this site Size Reduction – Tyres are shredded into chips or cut into pieces which cannot hold dirt or water. Granulation – Chip is fed into a granulator to liberate steel from rubber. Steel Removal – Magnetic separation of wire from rubber. Grinding – Rubber is milled to further reduce in size. Applications – Manufacturing, road construction and repairs, adhesives, playgrounds, civil construction and alternate fuels etc.