Tyre Dealers, Retreaders, Recyclers & Waste tyre processors can participate in this project.

Latest information 

The Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) introduced legislation to deal with the disposal of all waste in South Africa.  Central to this Waste Management Act is the principle of Producer Responsibility referring to manufacturers or importers of goods. Identified producers can be held responsible for the commodities they sell once it becomes waste.

The Waste Tyre Regulation 2009 states that the Minister will require tyre producers to submit a plan of how each tyre producer or importer will safely dispose of their tyres, whether new or used, once they become waste.  The Waste Tyre Regulation No 31901 of 2009 should be available on the Department of Environmental Affairs website www.sawic.org.za  

The definition of a tyre producer "means any person or institution engaged in the commercial manufacture or import of pneumatic tyres and retreadable casings, and the import of vehicles fitted with tyres for distribution in South Africa".

Tyres relate only to pneumatic tyres and vehicles "means any motorized or towed mode of transport or implement fitted with tyres".  

The SATRP Company, a section 21 company, not for gain, was created by some of the tyre industry producers to plan and administrate the waste tyre project on their behalf. Any tyre producer may become a subscriber to the Plan. In terms of the Waste Tyre Regulation Producers who wish to formulate their own waste tyre management plan can do so . Any such plan has to be forwarded to the Minister of DEA for approval.

The proposed plan of the SATRP Co, as submitted to DEA for approval provides for a non-profit organisation to administrate the sustainable collection of the subscriber's waste tyres in SA and make them available to DEA approved processors. This is as required by the Waste Tyre Regulation.

Most of the tyre stakeholders in SA including the local Manufacturers, Importers, Retreaders, Dealer principals, the Tyre Dealer Association, NGOs and other interested parties including National and Local Government have been involved in planning the process over the past 9 years.  

The Waste Tyre Regulation was gazetted on 13 February 2009.  The actual collection of waste tyres is foreseen to start between about 12 months after the approval of the Integrated Industry Waste Tyre Plan by the Minister of DEA.

 The SATRP Company's proposed business plan was presented to the Competition Commission for comment and subsequently amended with advice from senior legal advisors to ensure that it meets with the requirements of the Competition Act as well as the Consumer Act.

At present there is no sustainable and successful formal system for tyre dealers to dispose of the thousands of waste tyres that they receive on a daily basis and therefore face a serious problem. Many rely on collectors whose disposal method of the waste product remains a mystery. 
A number of retreaders do collect suitable used tyre casings from tyre dealers for retreading.

Subscribers to a Plan will need to raise a green fee on each of their new tyres sold to create a fund to offset the collection costs.  In brief, the monies raised will be used to cover the cost of transporting waste tyres from tyre dealers and delivering them to processors. Money will also be required for auditing, administration and a limited proposed disposal fee to Waste Tyre Processors who will have to conclude contracts with the SATRP Company. 

 The green fee will be widely publicised by the SATRP Company in order to make the public aware of the costs  and which tyre brands are involved in this specific Plan. 

The level of the Green Fee will be solely based on the cost to operate the SATRP Company, no profit will be made.  The major portion of the fee will be required to transport and store the waste tyres before processing.

Waste Tyre Transporters and Waste Tyre Processors appointed by the SATRP Company, following 
a tender process, will be obliged to be in possession of all the necessary permits as required by the relevant government bodies. They will also have to adhere to all the requirements of the Waste Tyre Regulation. 

The local provincial environmental offices should be contacted to obtain information on the relevant permits required.

Waste tyres will only be collected from tyre dealers and then transported to transfer sites for sorting and further onward delivery to processors. The collection of an estimated collectable 95,000 tons of high-way type waste tyres arising from every town and city in SA will require disciplined and well-regulated collection processes.  The first phase of collection will include passenger and commercial, highway type tyres.  
The other categories of tyres will follow in later years as capacity is created.

The SATRP Company plans to call for Transport tenders for the collection, storage and delivery of waste tyres. All waste tyres collected within a province will be accumulated at a few storage sites, as determined by the transporter within that province. The storage sites will be managed by the transporting company. The Transporter will also have to make provision for the temporary storage of waste tyres in accordance with the requirements of the Regulation and other regulations applicable.  It is foreseen that additional jobs will be created by these transporters.

Large and specialised transport vehicles, bins and tyre handling equipment will be required.

The SATRP Company will schedule collections and deliveries of the waste tyres.

The SATRP Company may only enter into contracts with organisations in possession of required permits or licenses.

What is a waste tyre processor?

A waste tyre processor "means any person or entity that is engaged in the commercial re-use, recycling or recovery of waste tyres". 
Recovery "means the controlled extraction of a material or the retrieval of energy from waste tyres".

The SATRP Company plans to issue tenders for the quantities of waste tyres required by the processors of waste tyres, and for which period of years and percentage of disposal fee tendered for. 

Most of the recycling processes require large capital and operating costs.  A recycling plant can cost anything from R10 million to R250 million. It also requires large amounts of working capital. Proper research into the technology and markets available is crucial when considering a recycling plant. 

Generally there is a very limited application for rubber crumb in SA  and it is also expensive to export. The success of any crumbing process is to find an end product that will make use of the crumb and add value.

Exports
Rubber crumb and products made from recycled rubber can in future be exported. This new business will add to the economy of SA and grow as the processes improve and new markets developed. The SA Balance of Payments will benefit accordingly. There are approximately 250 products that can be made from recycled rubber. Examples are: rubber matting, shoes, tank linings, rubber moldings, road tar additions etc.

Surveys done at tyre dealers indicate that up to 90% of used tyres taken off the lighter type of vehicles should be classified as waste tyres. These tyres are bald by being worn down to the tread belt or have bulges or sidewall damage and are not suitable to be retreaded or repaired. 
Over 135, 000 tons of passenger and commercial type waste tyres enter the market in SA annually. The EU experience is that only 70% of waste tyres becomes collectable.

Registration

Dealers, Retreaders and Waste Tyre Processors will in due course need to register via e-mail or fax, with the SATRP Company in order to arrange for collections and deliveries.

Current Subscribers are:                (Click on the subscriber name to see all the tyre brand names)

Bridgestone

Continental

Dunlop

Goodyear

Maxiprest 

Michelin

Pirelli

Trentyre

Send mail to info@rubbersa.com with questions or comments about this web site.