Scrap Tire Disposal in the US-Mexico Border and possible Recycling Solutions in the context of the BECC Development Proc

1. Scrap Tire Disposal in the US-Mexico Border and possible Recycling Solutions in the context of the BECC Development Process Twelfth Forum of the Border Legislative Conference El Paso, Texas, November 9, 2005 Daniel Chacon General Manager

2. What is the Border Environment Cooperation Commission? Established under the framework of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) along with its sister institution, the North American Development Bank. Highly specialized, binational agency with responsibility to identify environmental infrastructure needs and develop projects to alleviate those problems.

3. Geographical Mandate The area of responsibility is defined as 100 kilometers (62 miles) on the US side and 300 kilometers (187 miles) on the Mexican of the border. This region covers an area of 750,000 Miles and a population of 22.3 Million people This region covers important urban centers like San Diego, Tijuana, Hermosillo, Cd. Juarez-El Paso- Las Cruces, Chihuahua, Monterrey, y Saltillo. This reality demands new strategic actions.

4. Quality of Life is what we’re all about BECC’s technical nature allows it to help plan improvements to the infrastructure of communities which ultimately translate to improvements in the quality of life of the residents of those areas. Certify environmental infrastructure projects along the U.S.-Mexico border for funding by NADB and other funding institutions.

5. Nature of BECC Totally integrated bilingual, binational staff empowered to work on either side of the border, on projects for either nation. Transparency in all processes and total access to all information regarding the projects and all actions. Unique international organization facing challenges of developing infrastructure on both sides of international border, involving two sets of federal, state and local governments, and two different cultures. Partnerships established with agencies with complimentary missions – IBWC, USDA, CILA, CNA.

6. Types of Projects Primary Focus Water supply Wastewater treatment Solid waste management Related Areas Industrial and hazardous waste pollution Water conservation Residential water and wastewater hookups Recycling and waste reduction. Air quality Public Transportation Clean and efficient energy Municipal planning improvement Water management Expanded Areas

7. Project Certification Criteria Human Health and Environmental Need The project must address a human health or environmental need. There must be an environmental assessment conducted. It must comply with applicable environmental and cultural resource laws and regulations. Technical Feasibility Is the appropriate technology for the project and the community being utilized? Is there an appropriate plan for operation and maintenance, safety, quality assurance, training, and emergencies? Does the project comply with applicable EPA or SEMARNAT rules and regulations?

8. Project Certification Criteria (Continued) Financial Feasibility and Project Management Revenues must cover debt, operation and maintenance. The Fee/Rate must cover all costs. Applicant must demonstrate capacity to provide service at a reasonable price, make capital improvements, and provide accounting and financial reports as necessary. Community Participation Was a comprehensive community participation plan implemented and documented to assure public access and participation? Sustainable Development The project must be designed according to sustainability principles to assure the protection and sustainable use of resources. Water management and re-use are key requirement to avoid depletion of this already scare resource.

9. Technical Assitance California $ 1.89 mil. Arizona $ 3.31 mil. Nuevo Mexico $ 3.37 mil. Texas $ 11.06 mil. 70 comunities in the US $ 19.63 mil. 61 comunities in Mexico $ 11.06 mil. Baja California $ 1.70 mil. Sonora $ 2.73 mil. Chihuahua $ 2.31 mil. Nuevo Leon $ 0.35 mil. Coahuila $ 1.10 mil. Tamaulipas $ 2.2 mil. $ 30.69 MDD Approved 12/2004

10. Certified Projects 105 Projects California 11 proyectos $ 182.59 mil. Arizona 12 proy. $ 106.22 mil. Nuevo Mexico 7 proy. $ 52.65 mil. Texas 38 proy. $ 655.88 mil. 69 in US $ 997.34 MDD 36 in Mexico $ 1.18 BDD Coahuila 3 proy. $ 154.80 mil. Tamaulipas 5 proy. $ 232.60 mil. Baja California 9 proy. $ 497.19 mil. Sonora 11 proy. $ 172.76 mil. Chihuahua 7 proy. $ 195.08 mil. Nuevo Leon 1 proy. $ 1.40 mil. Estimated Cost -- $2.18 BDD Covers more than 8 Million people 12/2004

11. Scrap tire generation • In the United States, about 280 million scrap tires are generated per year (one per person) • In Mexico, about 40 million scrap tires are generated per year • Many more used tires are imported into Mexico, both legally and illegally, contributing extensively to the scrap tire problem

12. Stockpiled tires in Mexico’s border cities

13. What happens to tires in the U.S.?

14. What happens to tires in Mexico?

15. Tire-derived fuel

16. Tire-derived fuel (cont.) • Most developed market for scrap tires worldwide • Depending on the incinerator and primary fuel, tires can be burned whole or shredded • Used as a supplemental fuel with solid fuels such as coal or wood • Used predominantly by the cement industry, also by power plants, pulp & paper mills, and steel mills • Emissions profile is similar to coal’s, but with more particulate matter and zinc and less SO2 41% of scrap tires generated in the U.S. in 2001 were used as fuel

17. Civil engineering applications • Structural backfill • Erosion control • Landfill liners and covers • Municipal sewage treatment • Septic system drainage fields

18. Civil engineering applications (cont.) • Leaching from the metal in the tire chips is a concern • Formation of “hot spots” in tire shreds used in fill projects is a concern • Bacterial activity 14% of scrap tires generated in the U.S. in 2001 were used in civil engineering projects

19. Ground rubber applications • Rubber-modified asphalt • Playgrounds and athletic surfaces • Molded & bound products • Livestock mats • Speed bumps • Railroad crossings • Roof shingles • New tire manufacturing 12% of scrap tires generated in U.S. in 2001 were recycled into ground rubber

20. Ground rubber applications (cont.) Rubber-modified asphalt • Largest use of ground rubber—12 million tires/yr • Withstands hot and cold temperatures better than traditional asphalt • Lower life-cycle costs • AZ study found 40% lower life-cycle cost over 25 years • Increased traffic safety due to increased skid resistance and decreased maintenance needs • Decreased traffic noise by 4-6 decibels

21. Other uses for scrap tires • Retreading (for tire casings in good condition) • Pyrolysis • 40% carbon black • 25% pyrolysis oil • 20% hydrocarbon gases • 15% steel

22. Financial viability • Viability of any tire disposal or recycling project is highly dependent on several project-specific factors • Supply — # of locally available scrap tires • Location — Distance of tire stockpiles from the recycling center, and distance from markets for the end product • Size of system — economies of scale • Labor — costs of transporting, handling, and processing the tires • Condition — tires that have been in stockpiles may be too dirty or degraded for some options • Fuel costs — for TDF, cost of competing fuels such as coal and natural gas

23. Health effects • Tires provide habitat for vectors of human disease • Mosquitoes • Yellow fever, dengue fever, malaria, encephalitis and the West Nile virus • Rodents • Rabies, hantavirus, lyme disease, and the plague • Transport of tires spreads invasive species • Asian tiger mosquito (Aedes albopictus) • Yellow Fever mosquito (Aedes aegypti )

24. Scrap tire pile hazards: Fire • Highly combustible • Ignition by arson or lightning strikes • 20 major tire fires annually in the U.S. • Costly and lengthy firefighting efforts; substantial clean up problems • Sources of environmental contamination • Air • Surface water and ground water • Soils

25. Human health effects of open tire fires • Nearby residents • Emergency responders • Acute and chronic health effects • Irritation to skin, eyes, and mucous membranes • Respiratory effects • Central nervous system depression • Cancer

26. Overarching themes • Critical tire management strategy—to eliminate scrap tire piles • Fire prevention planning and training is paramount for existing tire stockpiles • All options discussed (tire-to-energy, civil engineering, ground rubber) have the potential to be certified under the BECC criteria • A binational assessement is requiered for legal and environmental responsibility in the whole distribution process like tax evasion, the fraudulent misuse of the disposal fees paid in the US and environmental and health risks due to mismanagement of scrap tires originated in the US

27. Disposal options in the Mexican Border Several Recycling options have been analyzed or developedrecently in the Mexican side of the Border: Pilot Project of Pirolisis in Matamoros; Canadian Pirolisis Option presented to Juarez; Australian ground rubber technology presented to Juarez; llancreto from Cemex with one street paved in San Pedro Garza, Nuevo Leon and other street paved in Tijuana, Baja California; TDF in cement kilns in Baja California, Sonora and Chihuahua

28. Border 2012 Goals to clean up of scrap tires sites with funding from EPA and SEMARNAT • El Centinela in Mexicali • INNOR site in Mexicali • Site in the landfill of Juareze

29. From 2004 to 2005 some 1.3 million tires have been disposed 420,000 from INNOR 400,000 from El Centinela 40,000 from 6 Delegations of Tijuana 550,000 from the landfill of Juarez Status of the clean up of scrap tires sites

30. Funding sources for the clean up of scrap tires sites in the border (2004-2005) • Semarnat 310,000 Dls • USEPA 225,000 • Gov. of Chihuahua 40,000 • Municipality of Juarez 40,000 • Gov. of Baja Calif. 200,000