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An international study has identified tire particles (TPs) as the largest source of microplastics, urging targeted research to address their environmental and health risks. Accounting for nearly a third of all microplastics, TPs differ from traditional microplastics in their size, chemical composition, and behavior in ecosystems, prompting researchers to advocate for their classification as a distinct environmental concern.

On the heels of its November 2023 commitment to gather information on the common tire additive 6PPD - and its chemical by-product 6PPD-quinone – that could be used to inform a subsequent regulatory action, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced today the publication of a draft testing method (EPA Method 1634) that will enable government agencies, Tribes, and other groups to determine where and when 6PPD-quinone is present in local stormwater and surface waters. The 6PPD-quinone draft method is now available at https://www.epa.gov/cwa-methods. “We heard from the Tribes and other governmental agencies that one of the highest priorities for the agency should be the rapid development of a test for 6PPD-quinone,” said Casey Sixkiller, Regional Administrator of the agency’s Region 10 office in Seattle.

Researchers at the University of Vienna's Centre for Microbiology and Environmental Sciences have now demonstrated that chemicals released from tires do, in fact, enter the food stream and may be consumed along with Quinone 6PPD which was defined as a toxin that impacts Coho Salmon. Their examinations of the impacts of contaminants from tire wear on lettuce revealed that: The lettuce absorbed all the chemicals investigated, some of which were quite hazardous. It will take further research to determine how this mechanism truly occurs in arable soils. An international publication called Environmental Science & Technology has officially published the report.

6PPD is an antioxidant and antiozonant that helps prevent the degradation and cracking of rubber compounds caused by exposure to oxygen, ozone and temperature fluctuation. 6PPD is used industry wide to help tires resist degradation and cracking, which is vital for driver and passenger safety. Antioxidants support increased tire endurance. There are no known alternatives to 6PPD that provide the same safety and performance characteristics in a tire.