South Africa’s long awaited waste tyre plan has been announced by Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment Minister Barbara Creecy
Creecy revealed the Industry Waste Tyre Management Plan (IWTMP), which was recently approved by the Government, and aims to deal with a number of issues arising from the waste tyre market.
Challenges to be addressed include the limited local processing capacities, storage, and logistical complications.
The IWTMP provides a comprehensive framework for the efficient and effective management of waste tyres in a circular manner. It serves as subordinate legislation to the National Environmental Management: Waste Act 2008 and is enforceable on all the identified role-players.
The new plan aims to ensure full waste tyre collection and the development of processing capacity, along with monitoring systems to ensure the model is properly followed.
Creecy elaborates that the plan outlines objectives such as full waste tyre collection, development of processing capacity and monitoring systems to track progress.
The Waste Management Bureau (WMB) will monitor the implementation of the IWTMP, and provide support for the municipal waste management plans and capacity-building programmes.
Creecy believes that the IWTMP will see all waste tyres being properly processed and the challenge of historic stockpiles being addressed.
This should see a number of opportunities for the private sector to become involved in developing a growing industry built around waste tyres.
The WMB will contract three dedicated regional implementers to manage the logistics and depot management elements of the value chain through contracted service providers.
Creecy adds that the IWTMP will create opportunities small, medium-sized and microenterprises, from collection to processing, and that these businesses will be supported by the departments of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE) and Small Business Development to take advantage of opportunities stemming from the expansion and more effective delivery of the waste tyre value chain.
Once again, South Africa has a plan in place to deal with all its tyre arisings. The previous plan operated by REDISA was not entirely supported by the tyre industry, and became subject of litigation, which ultimately saw the operation shut down. Members of REDISA had hoped to revive the operation but this announcement of the new plan for tyre recycling seems to have put an end to any such ambition.
The IWTMP ultimately aims to achieve 100% waste tyre coverage, complete waste diversion and support of new small businesses across the waste tyre value chain.
