|
Dec. 20, 2011
For immediate release
For more information, contact:
Tammy Snodgrass or Bonnie Prigge, (573) 265-2993
Tire recycling a group effort in Meramec Region
The Ozark Rivers Solid Waste Management District (ORSWMD) and the Missouri Department of Natural Resources (DNR) work together to improve the recycling efforts of tires in Missouri, which generates approximately five million tires annually.
Removing scrap tires better protects Missourians’ public health. Scrap tires can be host to mosquitoes, snakes and other vermin. The West Nile virus is also a health threat transmitted by mosquito.
The Ozark Rivers District has been doing its part to address the need for removing scrap tries by holding events such as tire and waste collections and illegal dump clean up days.
Ninety-four tires, which weighed nearly one ton, were collected in a region-wide special waste collection held Oct. 1 in Maries County. The collection also included 128 pieces of electronic waste and 17 appliances. The recycling event was a partnership effort among the Maries County Commission, the Ozark Rivers Solid Waste Management District, the Missouri Department of Natural Resources and the Meramec Regional Planning Commission (MRPC).
The Ozark Rivers District has spent $44,120 over the past five years on tire recycling through illegally dumped tire clean up efforts.
To stretch limited grant dollars allocated to Ozark Rivers, the district collects a fee on tires at these collections to offset recycling costs. Solid waste districts receive a portion of the tipping fees collected on each ton of trash disposed of in landfills. The dollars fund district operations and grant programs.
“Effectively, as we strive to reduce the amount of waste landfilled, we are reducing our revenue stream, therefore it’s important that we stretch each grant dollar,” said Ozark Rivers District Board Chairman Steve Murrell. “Our board recognizes that recycling is a partnership effort and, right now, recycling has a cost that the user of the product should share in. While we can help subsidize recycling of tires, we don’t have the funds to underwrite the entire effort.”
The Missouri Department of Natural Resources sponsored a tire collection free to the public from July 15-21 in the City of Vienna. While the collection was in partnership with the Ozark Rivers Solid Waste Management District and the Meramec Regional Planning Commission, the collection was funded by DNR. The collection boasted 13 full trailers of tires, roughly more than 19,000 passenger tires. Some of those came from outside the Meramec Region.
DNR’s Scrap Tire and Illegal Dumping Unit makes scrap tire removal a priority. All scrap tire activities are accomplished through a $.50 fee collected on the sale of new tires. Missouri has one of the lowest fees in the country of those states that collect fees on new tires. Funds in the scrap tire subaccount are allocated up to 50 percent for administration, up to 45 percent for grants for market development, up to five percent to educational programs and curriculum on solid waste management and the remainder for tire site cleanups.
This DNR program includes a scrap tire management system that creates economic incentives for the proper management of scrap tires in Missouri.
Scrap tire material grant funds, awarded annually by DNR, are used specifically for the cost and delivery of scrap tire surface material for playgrounds, running tracks, walking trails or other surfacing projects.
While the benefits of recycling waste products such as tires are numerous, the cost is not yet an affordable market, explained Tammy Snodgrass, MRPC assistant director/environmental programs manager.
“The playground grant program was established for the purpose of developing markets for recycled tire products,” Snodgrass said.
“Tires are not manufactured to come apart easily, so recycling them is expensive. The equipment used for tire shredding is very costly to buy as well as to maintain. By subsidizing recycled tire products, the state hopes to create more demand as well as showcase the superior quality of the finished product. The playground grants not only encourage markets for recycled products, but also help our schools and local parks make improvements,” Snodgrass said.
Public schools, private schools, parks, non-profit day care centers, other non-profit organizations, and governmental organizations other than state agencies are eligible to submit grant applications. Grant recipients are required to purchase material that is at least 40 percent – preferably 100 percent – Missouri-generated scrap tires. The scrap-tire material may be used as a loose material, a pour-in-place covering or as mats.
In 2011, Belle Elementary in the Maries County R-2 School District received a $20,000 grant through DNR’s Scrap Tire and Illegal Dumping Unit for a recycled tire surface to upgrade one of its playground areas.
The Meramec Regional Planning Commission was the grant writer for the funds, and Ozark Rivers Solid Waste Management District provided educational support. The grant project funded the installation of a 2,000 square foot pour-in-place playground surface. The new surface, completed in September 2011, increased the safety of the playground by replacing deteriorating wood mulch with a smooth play surface.
The Ozark Rivers Solid Waste Management District includes the counties of Crawford, Dent, Gasconade, Maries, Phelps, Pulaski and Washington and their respective cities with populations of 500 or more. The district's strategy for solid waste reduction, which has been individually adopted by all member governments and approved by DNR, involves intense education and increased recycling efforts in member counties and cities.
Those needing more information on tire recycling projects can contact Tammy Snodgrass at MRPC at 573-265-2993 or by email at tsnodgrass@meramecregion.org. Persons may also visit www.meramecregion.org for additional information on the district’s recycling efforts.
Belle Elementary School in the Maries R-2 School District received a new recycled-tire playground surface through a grant from the Missouri Department of Natural Resources. The new smooth play surface, which used over 1,000 shredded tires, replaced deteriorating woodchips. Meramec Regional Planning Commission wrote the grant, while Ozark Rivers Solid Waste Management District lent its support by providing educational materials for students. For example, the district distributed the brochure “Where Can I Dispose of? A Guide to Recycling and Disposal Opportunities in the Ozark Rivers District” to all elementary and middle school students. The Maries County R-2 PTO also helped with awareness and distribution of the educational information.
A region-wide special waste collection, held Oct. 1, 2011 in Maries County, included 128 pieces of electronic waste, 94 tires and 17 appliances. The special waste collection—which combined electronics, tires and appliances into one recycling event—was a partnership effort among the Maries County Commission, the Ozark Rivers Solid Waste Management District, the Missouri Department of Natural Resources and the Meramec Regional Planning Commission.
|
