UPDATE: CIWMB Grants Give Tires New Life

Peggy Caylor

SAN DIEGO - The California Integrated Waste Management Board (CIWMB), Sacramento, has awarded $305,887 in grants to help find alternative uses for the estimated 30 million waste tires that are stockpiled legally and illegally in the state.

The cities of Carpinteria, Garden Grove, Lemoore, Soledad and Yuba City, and the school districts in Beaumont and Downey cities have been named as recipients.

The awards will be used for waste tire research and development, and crumb rubber projects. For example, Garden Grove will use its grant to purchase rubberized railroad levelers. Beaumont plans to purchase new roofing materials made from waste tires. The remaining cities and school district will use their grants for running track surfacing made from crumb rubber.

The funding for these grants and CIWMB's waste tire site cleanup program comes from the organization's Tire Recycling Management Fund, which obtained money through a 25-cent state surcharge on the sale of new tires.

"It always has been this board's philosophy to promote recycling options for the millions of waste tires plaguing our state," says Daniel G. Pennington, CIWMB chairman. "I'm pleased that in addition to the $300,000 we awarded in March for rubberized playground safety mates, the board also has awarded grants for research and development projects for waste tires."

CIWMB is responsible for managing the 46 million tons of solid waste generated in California each year. The board works in partnership with local government, industry and the public to achieve a 50 percent waste reduction by 2000.

For more information, contact CIWMB at 8800 Cal Center Drive, Sacramento, Calif. 95826. Phone: (916) 255-2296. E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.ciwmb.ca.gov