Promoting Recycling Market Development Scrap Tire Rubber

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Promoting Recycling Market DevelopmentScrap Tire
Rubber

• Michael Blumenthal
• Rubber Manufacturers Association
• Washington, DC
• September 22, 2008

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RMA Scrap Tire Activities

• Began in 1990
• Scrap Tire Management Council RMA
• Sponsored by all RMA tire manufacturers
• Work with governments, scrap tire users, NGOs,
  general public to accomplish mission

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RMA Scrap Tire Strategic Goals

• To promote the elimination of all scrap tire
  piles in an environmentally and economically
  sound manner
• To promote the management of all annually
  generated scrap tires in an environmentally and
  economically sound manner

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RMA Scrap Tire Strategic Goals

• To seek public awareness of scrap tire management
  success
• To advocate for a legislative and regulatory
  environment that is conducive and supportive of
  the RMA scrap tire mission

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RMA Tire Company Members
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Ground Tire Rubber Applications

• Highest value added use for tire rubber
• Markets/demand for these products are expanding
  15-20 annually
• Since 1992 usage has gone from 0 to 50 million
  tires 1/6th of all tires generated
• Focus of many state tire programs

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Ground Tire Rubber Applications

• Rubber modified asphalt
• Molded rubber products
• Extruded rubber products
• Bound rubber products
• Horticultural applications
• Athletic fields playground cover

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Athletic and Recreational Applications for Ground
Rubber

• Ground rubber is used as surface cover in
  playgrounds, achieving key benefits
• Lower microbial growth
• Fewer serious brain injuries
• Lower costs over time due to lower decomposition
  and compaction

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Athletic and Recreational Applications for Ground
Rubber

• Ground rubber also used as part of artificial
  turf systems
• Lower serious head, neural and ligament injuries
• Greater durability
• Lower maintenance costs

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Recent Questions Raised

• Questions have been raised in several states
  about environmental or human health risk
  associated with ground rubber used in playground
  and/or sports surfacing applications
• Challenge of the so-called Toxic Tire

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Why All of the Questions?

• Report from an agricultural research station in
  Connecticut raised questions concerns called
  tires toxic
• Concerns arise from materials used to make tires
• Tire manufacturing process an unknown to these
  researchers

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Why All of the Questions?

• A preference for natural grass as opposed to
  artificial surfaces
• Urban heat sink (rubber not the cause)
• Natural grass industry is losing market share
  suspected of leaking allegations
• Tire rubber not a natural material

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Tires 101

• Tire are not classified as anything other than a
  non-hazardous solid or special waste
• Tires are a sum of their parts the raw materials
  used to make tires are chemically bound in tire
  making process

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Market Development for Tires

• Development of new product
• Introduction to market
• Slow initial phase
• New product is discovered
• Demand grows

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Market Development for Tires

• Questions arise
• Demand is impacted
• Demand wanes
• Answers are obtained (time consuming)
• Information is provided/issued addressed
• Are there lingering questions/doubts?
• Can the demand be revived?

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Recent Studies

• New York City Department of Health and Mental
  Hygiene published a fact sheet on artificial turf
• Provided the benefits of using artificial turf
  fields in place of natural grass
• Found that there is unlikely to be a health risk
  based on current information

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Recent Studies

• New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection
  released a white paper on ground rubber in
  playgrounds and artificial turf fields
• Found no obvious toxicological concern
• California Office of Environmental Health Hazard
  Assessment released a risk assessment of the use
  of recycled tires in playgrounds and tracks
• Found little risk associate with chemical
  exposure from recycled tires used in playgrounds
  or tracks

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Recent Studies

• Connecticut Department of Public Health released
  a fact sheet concluding that there is little risk
  to public health
• Concord, Massachusetts commissioned experts who
  concluded that there is little risk of exposure
  and thus little risk

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RMA Literature Review

• RMA has recently released a literature review of
  all of the available literature using a weight of
  the evidence approach across all of the available
  studies in order to make a comprehensive
  assessment of risk
• Over relevant 120 studies were reviewed and
  assessed

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RMA Study

• Review of the Human Health Ecological Safety of
  Exposure to Recycled Tire Rubber found at
  Playgrounds and Synthetic Turf Fields
• The purpose of this report was to evaluate the
  health and ecological risks associated with the
  use of recycled tire rubber in consumer
  applications, particularly playgrounds and
  athletic fields. In doing so, a thorough review
  of available literature was conducted including
  studies from both advocates and opponents to the
  use of recycled tire materials

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RMA Report Conclusions

• No adverse human health or ecological health
  effects are likely to result from these
  beneficial reuses of tire materials and
• While these conclusions are supported by existing
  studies or screening risk assessments, additional
  research would provide useful supplemental data
  regarding the safety of recycled tire products
  and enhance the weight of evidence used in risk
  communication

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CIWMB Research Project

• Interagency Agreement with Office of
  Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA)
  for Synthetic Turf Research
• 200,000 project approved April 22, 2008
• Designed to provide the Board, the public and
  tire-derived product manufacturers with current
  objective information on the health aspects of
  these turf fields, which in turn will result in
  better informed decisions about the product.
• Will also assess potential inhalation risks
  associated with particles or chemicals and
  abrasion injury risks and risk of bacterial
  infection in abrasion injuries.

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Market Development for Tires

• Both infill and loose-fill playground cover
  markets have been impacted by these allegations
• Infill applications still expanding, but to a
  lesser degree than a year ago
• Loose fill playground market still viable, but
  lower rate of growth than last year

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Conclusions

• Rubber products face many obstacles
• Clear need for abundant sources of good science
  reports
• Risk communication is very important
• Supporting data will not reach everyone and there
  will always be those opposed
• Key factor address concerns immediately

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Thank you!

• Contact Information
• Michael Blumenthal
• Vice President
• Rubber Manufacturers Association
• 202 682 4882
• michael_at_rma.org
• http//www.rma.org/scrap_tires/