According to www.awe.gov.au, the number of tyres that reach their end-of life in Australia is staggering and it's estimated 48 million equivalent passenger unit (EPU) About 66% were disposed either to landfill or stockpiled while 16 percent were recycled domestically however 18%, were exported abroad.
Western Australian Legislation
The storage, handling, transportation and disposal of used tyres are specifically controlled under the following Western Australian legislation:
Environmental Protection Regulations 1987 (Part 6, Schedule 1 and Schedule 5) - storage, handling, transportation and Disposal
Environmental Protection (Controlled Waste) Regulations 2004 – transport
Both the Environmental Protection Act 1986 and the Waste Avoidance and Resource Recovery Act 2007 have provisions that can be relevant to the control of used tyre waste.
The main uses of tyres after their lifetime as tyres.
The most common way to dispose of truck tyres is by sending them to a landfill. But, because tyres are made of rubber, steel and other materials, they can actually be recycled and used in a variety of ways.
For example, tyre chips can be used as fuel or as part of an artificial turf field. Steel belts from tyres can also be recycled and used in the construction industry. And finally, the rubber from tyres can be used to make new products like flooring and shoes.
Substitute for gravel:
One way to recycle old tyres is to use them as a substitute for gravel. This is especially useful for driveways and paths. The tyres can be cut up and used as a base layer, or they can be left whole and used as pavers. If you live in an area with a lot of rain, using tyres as a substitute for gravel can help prevent erosion.
Crumb Rubber:
Crumb rubber is a special type of material that's made from tyres. The cords and steel are removed to create the finest ground powder, which can be used in many industries like playground flooring or vehicle mudguards. You might also see this stuff around town on your doorstep. It's commonly found as an alternative to asphalt in sport stadiums, ski slopes and running tracks because it offers cushioning while being less likely to cause injury than harder surfaces.
Landfill Liners:
Landfills are a necessary evil. They're where we put our trash so it doesn't pollute our environment. But, landfills are also huge sources of pollution themselves. One way to help reduce landfill pollution is to line the bottom of the landfill with tyres. This helps to keep leachate (polluting liquids) from seeping into the ground and contaminating groundwater. Plus, it makes the landfill last longer since tyres are so durable.
Filters for wastewater treatment:
Did you know that tyres can be used to filter water? That's right - old tyres can actually help to clean up water! Here's how it works: Tyres are filled with tiny pores, which allow water to pass through but trap pollutants. This makes them ideal for filtering wastewater from factories or farms before it is released into the environment. Plus, using tyres saves money and resources that would otherwise be used to create new filters.
Paving roads with Tyres:
A number of cities have paved their roads using discarded rubber from car and truck tyres, including Cali in Colombia and Puebla in Mexico. In 2011 an American company paved a 300-foot stretch of road with recycled tyre chips - instead of making new rubber, they mixed discarded tyre scraps from used car tyres with a bitumen binder to create a substance that looks like blacktop but lasts three times as long as asphalt and costs half as much per square foot.