Big Strides in Canadian Tire Recycling

Tire Recycling in Canada has come a long way thanks to considerable effort and collaboration.

As I type this, Waste Reduction Week in Canada is in full swing.

Celebrating its 20th anniversary, this program was formalized by the Circular Innovation Council (formerly the Recycling Council of Ontario) which now leads this national campaign with support from a coalition of not-for-profit environmental groups and governments from each of the 13 provincial and territorial jurisdictions across Canada.

The program’s primary purpose is to celebrate environmental efforts and achievements while encouraging new innovative ideas and solutions and focuses on the principles of circular economy, resource efficiency, and waste reduction.

The turning point

In this vein, it’s a great time to reflect on strides made in the recycling and recovery of end-of-life tires across Canada.

Starting at the not-so-bright point in history, many will remember the massive tire fires in Hagersville, Ont. and St-Amable, Que., which dubbed 1990 “the year of the tire fire” in Canada.

These fires became the pivotal moment that serves as a continuous reference point that shapes tire recycling, end-of-life management, and sustainability efforts in Canada to this day.

After decades of work from government and industry stakeholders, including TRAC, Canada created some of the most effective scrap tire recycling programs in the world.

And today, end-of-life tires in Canada have a staggeringly high diversion rate, and …

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