Rubber pollution, similar to plastic pollution, occurs in various environments, and originates from a variety of sources, ranging from the food industry food processing chain to tire wear.
Causes
Tyre and road wear particles (TRWP)
Vehicle tire wear is a major source of rubber pollution,
[ Emissions Analytics finds pollution from tire wear can be 1,000x worse than exhaust emissions] other sources can be from
artificial turf(usually made from shredded old tires)
and rubber
and seals.
Tyre and road wear particles (TRWP) or tire wear particles (TWP) are a direct result of the road surface abrasion during vehicle transit and are thought to be released into the environment at a rate of 6 million tons year,
with the
United States and the
European Union emitting roughly 1120,000 and 1327,000 tons annually.
Both brand and season application affect the tire composition but rubber is usually the main component besides several additives such as, oils, fillers,
Vulcanization chemicals and other chemicals added to increase performance.
A concern is that, unlike
Exhaust gas, tire wear pollution is not regulated,
despite several studies documenting their potential toxicity.
Some devices are nonetheless being developed in an effort to reduce the amount of particulates expelled from tire wear and otherwise ending up in the environment.
[ The Tyre Collective website] Although not immediately visible to the naked eye, tire dust makes up a significant portion of
road debris.
It is believed that between 10 and 18 percent of the TWP released each year enter aquatic environments and can even be found in remote locations due to atmospheric transportation.
Classification
Very fine rubber dust particles can, depending on the classification be counted as
Microplastics (because rubber is just another
polymer) or separately, as fine rubber because its constituent
, the required additives, and the type of chemical bond mesh is slightly different. In a similar vein, rubber pollution is often implicitly mentioned when plastic pollution is addressed.
6PPD-quinone, an antiozonant used in rubber tires, has been found to kill endangered Coho Salmon when it accumulates into waterways from tire wear pollution.
See also
