ECAR Fact Sheet for Kentucky
Waste Tires

Regulations
Self-Audit Checklist
Best Management Practices
Contacts
Related ECAR Fact Sheets
Other Relevant Resources

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The following fact sheet was prepared by the ECAR Center staff. Once prepared, each ECAR Center fact sheet undergoes a review process with the applicable state environmental agency(ies). You can check on the status of the review process here. Please read the disclaimer on the status page. While we have tried to present a summary of the essential information on this topic, you should be aware that other items, such as local regulations, may apply to you.

What You Need to Know

The state of Kentucky estimates that about 6.5 million waste tires are generated annually in the state.

Hazards associated with waste tire piles include heavy mosquito infestations and fires. Waste tires accumulate water, which is a viable environment and ideal breeding ground for mosquitoes. Mosquitoes not only are nuisances, but also can carry and transmit disease to humans and animals

In addition to being breeding grounds for mosquitoes, waste tires also can be easily ignited, resulting in fires that are difficult to extinguish. Tire fires can burn for several weeks, causing millions of dollars of damage including soil, surface water and groundwater contamination.

Regulations

Kentucky has established a waste tire law that requires tire retailers, transporters and accumulators to register with the state and post a bond. The law also establishes management standards for waste tires to reduce the risk of fire and prevent water entrapment and mosquito infestations

Waste tires are defined as “tires not used for their originally intended purpose because of wear or damage, used tires stored for resale, and processed waste tire material.

If you are an automotive recycling dealer, and you are licensed with the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (the “cabinet”), you may accumulate up to 1,000 waste tires without registering as an accumulator. The waste tires must be stored in accordance with applicable laws, and stored on-site in a building, in an adjacent covered area, or closed container where public access is prohibited after business hours.

Accumulator Registration Exemption/Storage Requirements.  In order to remain exempt from accumulator registration requirements, you must:

• Accumulate no more than 1,000 waste tires.
• Manage the waste tires in accordance with environmental performance standards established by the cabinet for waste sites or facilities.
• Store the waste tires in a manner that allows fire fighting equipment access to the waste tires.
• Establish fire breaks to prevent the spread of fire.
• Prevent mosquito infestations and entrapment of water in the waste tires
• Store waste tires stored outdoors in closed containers, in adjacent covered areas, or in windrows no greater than twenty-five feet wide, ten feet high, and seventy-five feet long, with at least fifty feet of open, unoccupied ground between windrows.
• Unless the waste tires are stored in buildings, in adjacent covered areas, or closed containers, store them no closer than:
• Thirty feet from a utility easement, property line, or highway right-of-way;
• Two hundred fifty feet from a residence; or
• Two hundred fifty feet from a karst feature, surface water of the Commonwealth, or unplugged water well.
• Store waste tires on a surface with a grade of five-percent or less which is free of vegetation and other flammable materials.
• Display a permanent sign legible at one hundred feet, which identifies the name, address, and emergency telephone number of the person with the registration, the hours of operation, and the cabinet's emergency telephone number.
• Comply with recordkeeping requirements.
• Transfer waste tires only to a person who presents a letter from the cabinet
• approving a registration or a copy of a solid waste disposal facility permit issued by the cabinet.

Disposal of Waste Tires. Waste tires must be sent to permitted solid waste disposal facilities and under the following conditions:

• If transferred to a contained landfill, the waste tires shall be processed to prevent the entrapment of air or water.
• If transferred to a residual landfill, the waste tires shall be rendered suitable for disposal in a landfill and the landfill shall accept only waste tires for disposal.
• If transferred to an incinerator or to any facility for use as a fuel, the incinerator or other facility shall be permitted to allow the burning of waste tires and shall have received a local determination related to the waste tires in accordance with applicable laws.

Transporting Waste Tires. You must be registered to transport waste tires. Proper registration includes an approved registration letter, or a copy of a solid waste disposal facility permit issued by the cabinet.

Recordkeeping. You must maintain a recordkeeping system for the waste tires, tracking them from the time they become a waste tire to the time they are disposed, recycled, or used as tire-derived fuel.

Links to the Regulations and Forms. Use the following links to view the regulations pertaining to waste tire management.

Kentucky Waste Tire Regulations

Kentucky Environmental Performance Standards (401 KAR 47:030)

Self-Audit Checklist

When an inspector comes to your facility, there are certain things they check to see if you are in compliance with environmental regulations. It makes good sense for you to perform a "self-audit" and catch and correct problems before they result in penalties. Also, there are some compliance incentives associated with self-audits (see Audit Policy Page).

Use the following list to audit your waste tire storage areas and management procedures.

1.      Where are waste tires transported for disposal/recycling? Waste tire transporters must be registered. You must send waste tires to authorized disposal/recycling facilities.

2. How many tires are stored? Make sure you do not store more than 1,000 tires at any one time.
3. Are you storing the tires properly and keeping proper records? Waste tires must be stored in accordance with applicable laws, and stored on-site in a building, in an adjacent covered area, or closed container where public access is prohibited after business hours.

Best Management Practices (BMPs)

Most regulations tell you what you have to do to be in compliance, but they don’t explain how to do it. That’s where "best management practices" come into play. BMPs are proven methods that help you to get into compliance and stay there. The following BMPs are recommended for waste tire storage areas and management procedures.

• Store as few waste tires as possible at your facility.
• Schedule regular pickup for waste tires by a properly permitted hauler.
• Keep tires stored indoors, if possible, or keep tire piles covered in order to prevent entrapment of water.
• If stored outdoors, store waste tires in a sunny area. (Sunlight speeds evaporation of standing water and kills heat-intolerant mosquito larvae.)
• If waste tires cannot be processed in a timely manner, leave waste tires on the rims to avoid problems with mosquitoes until the waste tires can be managed properly.
• Do not burn or bury waste tires.
• Clean and maintain tire processing equipment regularly. Dirty, poorly maintained equipment poses a pollution risk from greasy rainwater run-off or dripping oil.

Contacts

1. For more information, contact the Kentucky Department for Environmental Protection, Division of Waste Management, at 502-564-6716 or contact the nearest regional office.
2. To report an environmental incident or complaint, contact the nearest regional office.

Related ECAR Fact Sheets

None.

Other Relevant Resources

1. Kentucky – Waste Tire Management Document

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