Bonn, May 08.05.2023th, 600 Unknown perpetrators dumped a total of XNUMX old car tires in the middle of the Beller Wald nature reserve in Horn-Bad Meinberg, Lippe. Not an isolated case: the ZARE initiative has been drawing attention to environmental damage caused by illegal tire dumps for years.
In Horn-Bad Meinberg, Lippe, on the night of April 24th to 25th, 2023 or later, unknown persons dumped a total of 600 old car tires in the middle of the forest. The police are investigating an environmental crime. The crime was probably well planned: according to press reports, the perpetrators drove twice into the forest with a large tractor to unload the tires in the nature reserve. Moss, lichen and cracks on the tires show that these are very old tires that have been stored for a long time and may have been used in agriculture to weigh down tarpaulins or foils.
The city of Horn-Bad Meinberg must now dispose of the dump – at the expense of the taxpayer for at least 3.000 euros. According to the city, around 800 tires are illegally dumped every year. The ZARE initiative can also confirm these figures: “We have been drawing attention to the problem of illegal tire disposal for years. The number of cases is increasing from year to year, which is alarming,” says ZARE network coordinator Christina Guth.
Illegal tire disposal is not a trivial offense
Criminals place discarded tires on forest paths, fields or other unsuitable storage areas, thereby harming people and nature. Tires do not decompose and their components can contaminate floors and increase the risk of fire if not disposed of properly. In addition, discarded tires collect water and dirt, which attracts pests. Tire dumps have therefore been banned in Germany since 2003 and are a criminal offence. Environmental offenders have to reckon with hefty fines. However, the perpetrators are often not caught and the general public has to pay for the disposal of the used tires.
On the website https://zertifizierte-altreifenentsorger.de/ the ZARE initiative documents the cases of illegal tire deposits in Germany and calls on motorists and specialist dealers to only have used tires disposed of by certified disposal companies. Certified waste disposal companies have the expertise to properly sort old tires and route them to the most sustainable recycling methods - this includes retreading, export as used tires as well as material and thermal recycling. Tire recycling in the spirit of the circular economy means that valuable raw materials such as rubber, steel and textiles are used for as long as possible and less waste is produced.
Companies can submit a disposal request for used tires via the ZARE website and thus be sure that certified disposal companies will take care of the disposal: https://zertifizierte-altreifenentsorger.de/.
About the ZARE initiative
The ZARE initiative is an amalgamation of 19 companies organized in the Federal Association of Tire Trade and Vulcanizing Trades (BRV), 17 of which are certified waste management companies. The ZARE partners have set themselves the task of raising awareness of professional tire recycling in Germany. ZARE informs drivers about the environmentally friendly disposal of used tires. At 26 locations, the ZARE partners cover almost all of Germany and the Netherlands.
The partners of the initiative are:
Allgemeine Gummiwertstoff und Reifenhandels GmbH, Bender Reifen Recycling GmbH, CVS Reifen GmbH, Danninger OHG Spezialtransporte, G & K Recycling Utsch GmbH, Hartung Speditions-, Handels- und Transport GmbH, HRV GmbH, KARGRO BV, KRAIBURG Austria GmbH & Co. KG, KURZ Karkassenhandel GmbH, Mondo Reifenmarkt GmbH, MRH Mülsener Rohstoff- und Handelsgesellschaft mbH, NZ-Entsorgung eK, PVP Triptis GmbH, Reifen DRAWS GmbH, Reifen Külshammer, Reifengruppe Ruhr, REIFEN OKA - Reifenhandel, Reifen Recyclingbetrieb Brenz GmbH, TireTech GmbH
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Press release as Word document
Picture: zare_location_map_illegale-tire-disposal
Caption: The ZARE initiative's "illegal deposits of scrap tyres" map.
Source: ZARE initiative
