Over 300 Million Waste Tires Each Year!!
According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”), there are at least 275 million waste tires in stockpiles throughout the United States. In addition, hundreds of millions of waste tires are generated annually. EPA estimates that approximately 290 million waste tires were generated in 2003 alone, and that one waste tire per person is currently being generated each year in the United States. Tires that are not beneficially reused either end up occupying valuable landfill space, or worse, are illegally disposed of in streams, fields, woodlands, or other areas harmful to the environment and public health.
As with many States, Pennsylvania has its share of waste tire problems. In 1996, for example, a fire at an illegal tire dump in Philadelphia destroyed a 1,700-foot section of bridge on Interstate 95, causing the bridge to collapse from the intense heat. According to the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT), millions of dollars were spent repairing the damage. In addition, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (“DEP”), with the help of county and local governments, recently completed the cleanup of three large scrap tire piles that contained over 3.2 million tires. The piles had been the source of much public concern and controversy due to the hazards they posed as a fire threat and a health threat (specifically disease-causing vermin and mosquito breeding, often with West Nile virus implications). DEP estimates that Pennsylvania generates approximately 12 million waste tires annually.
Illegal tire dump
Western Pennsylvania has not escaped the waste tire problem. Recently, the DEP’s Northwestern Regional Office announced a fine against a Butler resident for numerous violations of improperly transporting, handling, and disposing of waste tires at several sites in Butler and Lawrence Counties. The press release indicated that approximately 10,000 tires were illegally disposed of, and that administrative orders had been repeatedly violated over a period of years.