Tire Industry Project closing in on key objectives

NIAGARA FALLS, Ontario—The Tire Industry Project, a collaborative effort between 11 tire industry CEOs to proactively identify and address the potential human health and environmental impacts of tires throughout their life cycle, is well on its way to meeting its objectives.

This was the message of Kimm Jarden, a principal sustainability specialist at Goodyear, in her presentation at the 2018 Rubber Recycling Symposium held recently in Niagara Falls, Ontario.

Goodyear, Bridgestone and Michelin are co-chairs of the TIP, which was founded in 2005 under the aegis of the Geneva-based World Business Council for Sustainable Development, according to Jarden.

The other members of the TIP include Continental, Cooper, Hankook, Kumho, Pirelli, Sumitomo, Toyo and Yokohama, she said. Together, they represent 65 percent of global tire production, with more than 650,000 employees around the world, she said.

"The TIP was founded on the scientific knowledge of the tire industry," Jarden said. "Our goal is to advance the scientific understanding of tires and their health and environmental effects."

Tire industry CEOs have TIP meetings in Geneva every two years, according to Jarden. The organization works with regional tire organizations across all countries, she said.

Tires contain more than 100 raw materials, and as such provide a unique challenge to recyclers, according to Jarden. Even so, in a study of 51 countries that contain 89 percent of the vehicles in the world, 67 percent of end-of-life tires are recovered, she said.

"World tire production is expected to double by 2050," Jarden said. "Understanding their environmental impacts is truly crucial."

Besides identifying and addressing the health and environmental impact of tires, Jarden said the objectives of the TIP are: To establish measurement and benchmarking frameworks to create new industry methodologies; and to initiate and support in-depth research that leverages industry resources and expertise.

To date, according to Jarden, the TIP has:

• Developed industry frameworks for measuring tire production, use and impact;
• Collaborated with third-party organizations to conduct peer-reviewed reports;
• Analyzed the potential impact of tire production and use on the environment and human health; and
• Identified areas for improvement in sustainability efforts, carbon emissions, energy consumption and water intake.

Besides end-of-life tires, the TIP's topics include but are not limited to ISO standards, key performance indicators, nanomaterials, sustainable natural rubber, product category rules, tire and road wear particles, tire granulates and tire testing, Jarden said.

Tire and road wear particles are "our meat and potatoes work," according to Jarden. "This work led to more lab studies on human health impacts and the identification of tire particles in the environment."

To achieve its goals, the TIP works with several world-class consultants, an "Assurance Group" comprised of experts from academia and elsewhere, and key stakeholders including non-government organizations, she said.

The TIP published its first report on environmental key performance indicators in 2017, Jarden said. The report presented trends in the tire industry's environmental performance between 2009 and 2015, she said.

From 2009-15, TIP members decreased their energy use by an average of 2 percent annually; decreased carbon emissions by an average of 2 percent annually; and decreased water use by an average of 4 percent annually, she said.

The TIP also invested in the development of a Product Category Rules document, which was published in November 2017. This is a common methodology that nevertheless did not previously exist in the tire industry, according to Jarden.

"TIP developed a first-of-its-kind PCR that is technically comprehensive and enables consistency of evaluation on a global basis," she said.

Tire makers must follow the PCR when determining product environmental impacts for Environmental Product Declarations, according to Jarden. "This tool allows the industry to improve environmental transparency and better assess ways to mitigate its environmental footprint," she said.

As for tire and road wear particles, TIP research has determined that it presents no significant risk to human health or the environment, Jarden said.

The TIP's objectives on end-of-life tires, according to Jarden, are to:

• Evaluate the current state of management systems, recycling and recovery rates;
• Share research on management systems and methodology; and
• Identify data gaps in scrap tire management and implement strategies to close those gaps.

In 2010, the TIP published a manual to help local stakeholders with scrap tire management systems, according to Jarden.

"TIP publishes updated state-of-knowledge reports to identify best recovery routes and effective methods for the future," she said.

Going forward, the TIP will continue to conduct research into tire-related health and environmental impacts and pursue innovative methods for reducing environmental impact, according to Jarden.

In October 2018, the organization launched a global platform to define sustainability standards for the natural rubber supply chain, she said.

The NR sustainability platform effort was spearheaded by TIP members and driven by stakeholders including tire and rubber manufacturers, auto makers, rubber suppliers and NGOs, she said.