The Leading Journal for the Tyre Recycling Sector

The Leading Journal for the Tyre Recycling Sector

California Governor Blocks Tyre Management Bill

California has some issues with tyre recycling, according to Calrecycle only around 46 per cent of the State’s tyres get recycled. So, things were looking positive for the industry when Assembly Bill 2908 was approved and was set to create a Tire Recycling Incentive Program. Howate Governor Jerry Brown stopped the Bill dead in its tracks by using his veto.

Tyre Management Bill Blocked

Assembly Bill 2908 would have replaced the Rubber Pavement Market Development Act, the state’s current program that grants money to municipalities to fund rubberised asphalt paving projects.

“While this bill creates an incentive payment program, it also requires 50 per cent of the payments to go to local governments for paving projects,” Mr. Brown said. This, he said, would limit the ability of the California Department of Resources Recovery and Recycling (CalRecycle) to fund innovative tyre recycling projects. Which, given the rate of recycling seems a rather odd juxtaposition.

Instead of signing the bill, Mr. Brown directed CalRecycle to recommend its own incentive program in its next budget.

AB 2908 was backed by Californians Against Waste (CAW), which promoted the bill as a way of increasing the state’s tyre recycling rate.

“Most California tyre stakeholders…were concerned that the proposed new TRIP program would be costly, time-consuming and extremely complicated given the myriad of tyre products that would need to be examined and funneled into different tiers for determining monetary incentives,” said Terry Leveille, president of Sacramento-based TL & Associates and a consultant to the CTDA.

“Instead, these stakeholders argued, why not have CalRecycle simply increase its current tyre grant program to local governments and school districts that offset costs to locals for tyre-derived products?” Mr. Leveille said.