If you live in Nebraska and have unwanted tires, Friday, November 4 is the time to get rid of them free and help save the environment at the same time. Visit Fremont's Christensen Field between 8:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. Keep Fremont Beautiful, in conjunction with the City of Fremont and the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality (NDEQ) is hosting the collection event on Friday, November 4, 2016, from 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. in the west parking lot of Fremont’s Christensen Field at 16 Ridge Road Drive.
This event is open to residents STATEWIDE. Businesses such as trucking companies, construction companies and farms may participate, but drop-offs will not be accepted from tire dealers or firms that charge disposal fees. Staff and volunteers will accept car, truck, semi-trailer truck and tractor/farm tires that have been removed from rims. Assistance is limited so individuals should be prepared to unload their vehicles in order to keep the drop-off line moving. Individuals must sign a log to document the number of items dropped off and verify that the tires are from Nebraska.
Whole tires have been banned from landfills which is why dealers and transfer sites charge disposal fees. At Fremont’s Waste Transfer Station, for example, per-tire charges are $4.60 (car), $11.30 (truck) and $20.50 (tractor). Whole tires present a risk in landfills because they take up a lot of space and 75% of it is void. Rain or snowmelt may cause them to fill with water and/or methane and rise to the surface where rodents and mosquitoes may breed, presenting health and safety hazards. Tires will burn and these fires are difficult to extinguish, releasing contaminants into the air, water and soil.
Fremont’s last Amnesty Event was held in 2014, when 148 tons of tires were collected. To put the number of tires collected in perspective, a car tire weighs about 20 pounds, approximately 100 per ton. Other types of tires weigh much more—pickups (35 to 50), semi-trailer trucks (100) and tractors/farm equipment (150 to 350). This year, thanks to the NDEQ grant, collection boundaries have been extended statewide to provide for proper disposal of up to 450 tons.
Proper disposal at the event ensures that the tires will be shredded. Scrap rubber in shredded form may be used safely in landfills for a variety of purposes. It may also be used to create landscaping and playground mulch, paving materials and other recycled products.