Beware cheap waste tyre collection offers – TRA urges retailers

The Tyre Recovery Association has urged tyre retailers, vehicle dismantlers, and others who need to dispose of waste tyres to beware unrealistically low rates. Reprocessing costs are soaring, as Tyrepress previously reported, and measures by Asian authorities, especially in India, are countering the trade imbalance that has artificially lowered the cost of exporting waste tyres to the continent. Tyre Recovery Association secretary general Peter Taylor explains that rates hit historic lows over the past year or two due to often questionable treatment processes in the region.

Since late-2019, India and other Asian nations have acted to put an end to socially and environmentally damaging recycling practices. One outcome of this is a return to more realistic market conditions, meaning operators offering similar rates to those of 2018-19 are unlikely to find legitimate tyre recycling and reprocessing opportunities. With this set to become a long-term trend, the TRA has alerted UK regulators and environment authorities to the possibility of a spike in illegal activity. The association also reminds those generating waste are legally required to assure themselves that it has been been put in the right hands.

The TRA adds that collection rates for old tyres are rising rapidly as UK recovery infrastructure readjusts to more historically normal conditions. It concludes: “Our tyre retailers, vehicle dismantlers, local authorities and all those others disposing of old tyres need to recognise this fundamental change in the cost base of responsible tyre recycling and be on their guard against a likely rise in illegal practices in the coming months.”