Why Recycle Rubber?
Recycling Rubber Prevents Pollution And Helps Build Innovative Products.
Rubber has been recycled for about a century, but the market has greatly expanded in the past two decades. Most recycled rubber comes from the reuse of rubber tires, which has significant benefits to the environment and the public. In fact, eighty percent of tires are recycled and reused annually, preventing millions of scrap tires from being dumped in landfills, lakes, abandoned lots, and along the side of the road. Things to know:
Today, rubber tire recycling keeps more than 220 million tires out of landfills each year.
Recycling just four tires reduces CO2 by about 323 pounds, which is equivalent to 18 gallons of gasoline.
In short, recycling saves impressive amounts of energy, ultimately reducing greenhouse gas emissions and slowing global warming. Recycled rubber also gives us innovative ways to reduce waste while solving important challenges – from facilitating softer playground surfaces, to reducing the chance of injuries for athletes, to building lower-impact hospital floors for nurses on their feet all day.
Recycled Rubber Is Just That—Rubber.
Recycled rubber is produced from replaced tires through a straightforward process. Materials like fiber and wire are moved and the rubber is cleaned, and then the rubber is typically ground into what is called crumb rubber.
The non-rubber portions of the tire are also recycled. For example, the steel beads that give the tire its shape and structure are recovered by recyclers and processed into specification grade product used by steel mills for new steel.
At no point in the process does the rubber undergo any chemical change. In short, recycled rubber is rubber. The recycled rubber can then be used for a wide variety of applications, including in play-surfaces, hospital floors, roads and sidewalks, and even shoes.
The Products Made From Recycled Rubber Are Safe And Environmentally-Friendly.
To date, there have been more than 110 scientific studies, including peer-reviewed academic analyses and federal and state government reports that have thus far found no significant health risk associated with artificial (synthetic) turf with recyclable rubber infill.
We've highlighted some recent studies below.
Environmental Research: An environmental research team published a January 2018 study which found that all estimated exposure risk scenarios fell within EPA guidelines, and that cancer levels for synthetic turf field users were comparable to or lower than those associated with natural soil fields.
Washington State Department Of Health: The Washington State Department of Health published an April 2017 study testing unsubstantiated claims that soccer goalkeepers were more likely to get cancer due to high levels of crumb rubber exposure, and their research found that the players identified actually had lower rates of cancer compared to peer groups.
European Chemicals Agency: The European Chemicals Agency published a February 2017 study which found no reason to advise people against playing sports on synthetic turf containing recycled rubber granules as infill material, based on finding a very low level of concern from exposure to substances found in rubber granules.
Sports Medicine: Dr. Archie Bleyer published a May 2017 study in which he found that the state of adolescent cancer causation research does not support claims of connection to crumb rubber, and Bleyer concluded that decreasing exercise by reducing access to playgrounds and sports fields may actually increase the rate of cancer occurrence among children in later life.