Amnesty program has many benefits

Today I would like to talk about the state Tire Amnesty Program put on by the Kentucky Department of Waste Management.

The program began in the county in 1999 and continued every four years. The program is set up to accept and dispose of most tires, in an effort to eliminate unwanted tires from our streams, roadsides and other locations at no charge to the public. The program will be offered to Henry County residents Oct. 20-22 at the state road barn located on Kentucky-193, north of New Castle.

We will accept tires on and off the rims, but we cannot take foam or calcium filled tires, large off-road construction equipment tires with a bead greater than 1.75”, and solid tires with pressed-on rims. Any resident is eligible to participate except tire retailers and agricultural tire retailers. Hours will be from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. There will be workers to assist in unloading and separating the tires.

Historically the program has been a great success and benefit for the people of the Commonwealth and Henry County. In 1999 Henry County received 65,607 tires. 65,607. In 2003 the total came to 56,011, a decrease of 15 percent. In 2007, Henry County received 38,869 tires, a decrease of 31 percent from 2003. The decreases can be attributed to the previous amnesties.

In other words, there are fewer and fewer tires to get rid of because they have been disposed of in previous tire amnesty programs. The general downward trend is expected to continue each time we have the program. Since the inception of the program in 1998 approximately 17 million waste tires at a cost of $15.5 million have been collected in the Commonwealth.

What’s happening to all those tires? Tire-derived fuel is the product of adding a small percentage of waste tires to coal-fired boilers. The results are lower emissions and cleaner and hotter burns. Since 2001 it is estimated that over 90,000 tons of carbon dioxide has been avoided thru the use of TDFs.

Another use of the waste tires is the ground rubber market. Ground rubber is used in playgrounds, colored landscape mulch and athletic fields. Ground rubber accounts for about 17 percent of the waste tires that are generated from the tire amnesty program. Since 2005 Kentucky has awarded 215 grants totaling $5.8 million, to municipalities and schools for ground rubber uses. Eminence Independent and Henry County Public Schools each have received at least one of these grants

Another benefit of the removal of waste tires is the decrease of mosquito-borne illnesses in the Commonwealth. There were 75 reported cases of the West Nile Virus in 2002 and only one case reported in 2008. It is believed that some portion of this decrease is due to the removal and disposal of waste tires.

Feel free to contact the planning and zoning/solid waste office for any questions. The phone number is 502-845-7760 and my direct email is jodyrucker@hotmail.com. Remember the dates: Oct. 20-22, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the state maintenance barn located one-quarter mile on Kentucky 193 off of U.S. 421/Kentucky 55. Statistical data was provided thru the Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet Department for Environmental Protection.