May 16, 2003
Environmental Advocates Hails Passage of Historic Waste Tire Bill

(Albany, NY) - Environmental Advocates of New York today applauded the passage of a comprehensive waste tire management initiative by the state Legislature. The tire program - the Waste Tire Recycling Act of 2003 - and the funds to pay for it, were both a part of bi-partisan joint budget legislation that became law May 15, after surviving a gubernatorial veto. Through the Act, which was developed by a task force appointed by Gov. George Pataki, the state will begin to inventory and clean up waste tire piles and help finance a variety of recycling activities for rubber from scrap tires. The legislation establishes a dedicated Waste Tire Program Fund which derives its money from a $2.50 per tire fee to be collected from the sale of new tires. The first year will see $8.25 million go to start the program, with more available in subsequent fiscal cycles. The law is scheduled to sunset in 2010.

The legislation culminates four years of work by a coalition that includes the environmental community, tire manufacturers and processors, municipal recycling officials and other interested parties. New York is thought to have more whole tires in piles - more than fifty million - than any other state. Two of the most notorious piles are on the banks of important water bodies: the Mohawk Pile in Waterford near the Hudson River and the Pinnacle Pile in West Monroe near Oneida Lake. Both contain several million tires.

"With the passage of this bill," said David Higby, Solid Waste Program director for Environmental Advocates, "New York will begin to get relief from the threat of costly and polluting tire fires and will finally be on its way to a responsible tire management program we can be proud of. Dangerous tire piles will be cleaned up, and scrap tire materials will be treated as the valuable resources they are."