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Scratch that itch! A normal reaction to something irritating our skin. A minor annoyance. But it could be something more.
That something more may have an unlikely cause: the old, worn-out tires you routinely replace on your car or truck. They’re called waste tires. And they could pose a significant health hazard.
State laws govern the disposal of waste tires. The introductory language in most if not all these rules and regulations is, “The purpose of the tire program is to protect the public health, welfare and quality of our environment.” But what does public health have to do with old tires?
Arkansas reported in 2023 the collection of more than 3 million waste tires. Our state’s population is nearing 3.1 million. We believe there are more discarded waste tires every year than what is reported to the state. However, the lack of adequate state resources hampers the effective collection, transporting and recycled processing of those tires. Plus, there are well-known locations around the state where tens of thousands of tires have been dumped, but there’s no money to clean them up.
Out of sight, out of mind.
While waste tires are a problem you don’t think about, they could be part of the reason mosquito-borne illnesses are now on the rise. You see, old tires collect water inside their walls. Standing, stagnant water is a welcome home for the breeding of disease-carrying insects, particularly mosquitoes. Waste tires also attract rats and snakes and can catch fire, releasing toxic chemicals.
It’s been hot, hasn’t it? One result of warmer temperatures is an increase in the breeding season for mosquitoes. More waste tires, common in rural states, mean more mosquitoes. And more mosquitoes mean more illnesses carried by their irritating bites.
The Centers for Disease Control tracks mosquito-borne illnesses. One of the most concerning is the West Nile virus. There have been multiple U.S. deaths from the virus this year alone. The seventh such death was recently reported by the CDC after a Dallas woman died in August from the disease. Causes of death can be from neurologic diseases, including meningitis or encephalitis.
The CDC lists other diseases carried by mosquitoes, including eastern equine encephalitis, commonly called triple E, which can cause seizures; Zika, causing fever, rash, joint pain and red eyes; and dengue fever, with aches and pains, typically eye pain, bone pain, nausea and vomiting. All from mosquitoes that love to breed in the water collected by dumped or overly stockpiled waste tires.
That was the bad news. The good news is there exists in Arkansas the basic structure to help solve the blight of waste tires and their public health hazards. This structure can also respond to the needs of tire retailers to remove the old tires they replace, while creating economic development in support of Arkansas industry and jobs. (There are opportunities in Arkansas’ recycled steel industry and for waste-tire use in rubber-modified asphalt.)
All that is needed is adequate funding, not from increased taxes, but from a fair application of existing tire-removal fees, fees reduced in 2017 for consumers.
When the rubber meets the road, the rubber eventually wears out. The responsible thing to do is support a waste tire program that properly disposes and recycles for beneficial use these millions of old tires, keeping our Natural State clean, healthy and thriving.
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