California on the Road to Fewer Waste Tires: State improving the ride while protecting the environment

SACRAMENTO--Thanks to the California Integrated Waste Management Board (CIWMB), many California cities and counties are well on their way to improving their roads while diverting thousands of waste tires from landfills. Local governments statewide will receive more than $2.8 million in grants to use rubberized asphalt concrete (RAC) and rubberized asphalt chip seal in a number of paving projects – completing the circle by taking old tires that used to travel the roads and putting them into the roads.

“California is a leader when it comes to all things innovative and it’s encouraging to see local governments taking steps to divert tires and improve our environment,” said Board Chair Margo Reid Brown. “Using RAC is another example of communities finding a higher, better use for waste materials.”

Funding for the grants come from three individual RAC grant programs. The Targeted RAC Incentive (TRI) program help first-time and/or limited RAC users cover the difference in costs between RAC and conventional asphalt paving. The RAC Use program helps repeat users of RAC promote markets for recycled-content products derived from waste tires. Finally, the RAC Chip Seal programs helps new and ongoing users of RAC fund road repair and maintenance projects.

All RAC grant programs are funded from the $1.75 recycling fee levied on each new tire sold in California. The Board receives $1.00 of each $1.75 fee, and the remainder is used for tire-related air emission programs.

California produces more than 42 million waste tires annually. Although approximately 75 percent is diverted from landfill disposal, the state faces the challenge of dealing with roughly 10 million surplus tires annually, the majority of which end up in landfills or illegal stockpiles. Over the past few years, California has recycled nearly 10 million waste tires with RAC paving projects.

Waste tires create several environmental health hazards if landfilled or illegally stockpiled. Piles can collect water, creating breeding grounds for disease-carrying mosquitoes, rodents and other pests. Tire piles also pose a high fire risk. Tire fires are difficult to extinguish, and create heavy smoke and toxic runoff into waterways.

RAC is an alternative to traditional asphalt made by blending rubber from recycled waste tires with asphalt, and then applying the mix to road surfaces. Standard RAC uses 2,000 waste tires for every lane mile paved while RAC Chip Seal utilizes 300 pounds of waste tires for every ton of seal material. RAC resists cracking, retains its original color so road markings are more clearly visible, reduces noise, and over its lifetime dramatically cuts costs for road projects: a two-inch layer of the material can save up to $50,000 per lane mile compared to a standard 4-inch thick layer of conventional asphalt.

RAC Grants awards were approved for the eligible applicants listed below:

Applicant	Amount
TRI Program
Tulare County	$175,000
City of Irwindale (Los Angeles County)	$150,000
City of Mountain View (Santa Clara County)	$175,000
City of Rialto (San Bernardino County)	$175,000
City of Upland (San Bernardino County)	$175,000
City of Vacaville (Solano County)	$225,000
City of Victorville (San Bernardino County)	$150,000
Subtotal	$1,158,800
RAC Use Program
City of Fremont (Alameda County)	$45,500
City of Laguna Woods (Orange County)	$68,760
City of Lompoc ( Santa Barbara County)	$58,000
City of Riverside (Riverside County)	$63,500
City of Santa Clarita (Los Angeles County)	$100,000
City of Santa Monica (Los Angeles County)	$100,000
Subtotal	$435,760
RAC Chip Seal Program
Sonoma County	$150,000
City of Campbell (Santa Clara County)	$83,223
City of Cathedral City (Riverside County)	$90,000
City of Chino (San Bernardino County)	$150,000
City of Clovis (Fresno County)	$98,643
City of Colton (San Bernardino County)	$37,000
City of Fairfield (Solano County)	$77,350
City of Fremont (Alameda County)	$122,000
City of Lindsay (Tulare County)	$39,000
City of Lodi (San Joaquin County)	$134,875
City of Madera (Madera County)	$150,000
City of Redwood City (San Mateo County)	$25,020
City of Tracy (San Joaquin County)	$144,222
Subtotal	$1,301,333
TOTAL Grant Awards	$2,895,893

The California Integrated Waste Management Board is the state's leading authority on recycling and waste reduction. It promotes reducing waste whenever possible, managing all materials to their highest and best use and protecting public health and safety and the environment.

The California Integrated Waste Management Board is one of six boards, departments, and offices within the California Environmental Protection Agency (Cal/EPA).

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Zero Waste California
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