Environment Protection Authority Victoria (EPA) in Australia announced that over one thousand tons of scrap tires were eliminated from the Numurkah tire stockpile – this amount is equivalent to a quarter of the massive tire accumulation.

To remove tires from the site, EPA received funds from the regional authorities and operated in accordance with the Environment Protection Act.

Commenting on the disposal, EPA’s manager stated that the procedure was on the right track as the initiative follows a plan which allowed removing tires from the most high-risk areas. Until now, EPA managed to eliminate scrap tires from the eastern part of the stockpile, and currently the procedures are conducted to remove tires in the southern part. According to EPA’s manager, all goes in line with the plan and the deadline will be met, however the process may be impeded by sudden bad weather.

The removal efforts were undertaken as the accumulated tires made the neighborhood residents anxious – scrap tires pose fire hazard. Once the pile catches fire, it is extremely problematic to eliminate it. The site has thousands of scrap tires; thus, the scope of the disaster would be great if the fire begins at the area.

The clearance started late last year when eight trucks began regularly visit the area where they were loaded with tires. The removal efforts are expected to last in total for 10 weeks. On December 11, the first group of vehicles attended the site and removed tires as part of the bigger operation aimed at getting rid of security threats. All collected tires are brought to a sanctioned facility in Melbourne where they will undergo further recycling, will be shredded and transformed into products used in construction and automotive industries.

Article by Trailermag.