Waste Tires

ECAR Fact Sheet for Nebraska
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

Scrap tires provide convenient habitats for rodents. They hold water and become excellent breeding grounds for mosquitoes that carry diseases. Improperly stored tires present a fire hazard. They trap oxygen that will constantly feed the flames which emit noxious, air polluting smoke. When tires are illegally burned, oils and soot can run off and contaminate both surface and ground water.

This fact sheet will help you manage the tires stored at your facility and how to dispose of them properly.

Regulations

Legislative Bill 143, passed by the 2003 Nebraska legislature, has substantially changed the management of waste tires in Nebraska. The bill eliminated the waste tire permit program (except for waste tire haulers) and established storage requirements and acceptable uses for waste tires. The bill moved the regulation of waste tires from Title 136 to Title 132, Integrated Solid Waste Management Regulations.

Permit Requirements. You are required to obtain a permit if you are a tire collector, tire processor, tire hauler or a person owning property on which a collection site. You are exempt from permit requirements if you are:

A business which removes tires from motor vehicles if no more than 500 hundred scrap tires are kept on the premises;
A tire retailer if there are no more than 500 scrap tires at the retail site;
The owner or operator of a tire retreading business if there are no more than 2,000 scrap tires on the business premises;
A solid waste disposal area owner or operator holding a permit under the Integrated Solid Waste Management Act with no more than 5,000 scrap tires stored above ground at the permitted facility;
A person using scrap tires for agricultural purposes;
A transporter of new or used tires to the manufacturer for warranty adjustments; or
A tire retailer is exempt from permit requirements as a tire hauler if engaged in hauling their own tires.

If you are involved in more than one permitted scrap tire activity on the same premises, you are required to submit one application that contains information relating to all activities.

Local governing bodies may develop and enforce local ordinances, codes, or rules and regulations on scrap tire disposal and processing equal to or more stringent than the state’s rules. Check with your local municipality to ensure you are in compliance.

Storage Requirements. Any person storing or accumulating waste tires must:

Provide measures to minimize risks to public health and welfare caused by disease-carrying insects and rodents.
Locate the waste tire accumulation site outside wetlands and/or 10-year floodplains.
Comply with the State Fire Marshal regulations, Title 153 of the Nebraska State Fire Code Regulations.

Up to 500 Passenger Tire Equivalents (PTE¹) of waste tires can be stored for up to one year. Storing more than 500 PTE is considered illegal disposal of a solid waste, with the following exceptions:

More than 500 PTE of waste tires can be stored if written documentation can show that 75% of waste tires accumulated at the beginning of a calendar year are recycled, reused, or shipped out of state by the end of that year.
Any person can accumulate more than 500 PTE of waste tires for the purpose of transporting waste tires offsite for reuse, recycling, or shipment out of state provided they are accumulated in no more than two containers for less than one year. A container is a portable receptacle in which material is stored, transported, or collected. Permitted solid waste disposal areas do not have to accumulate waste tires in containers.
Tire retailers are allowed to accumulate more than 500 PTE of waste tires for less than one year for the purpose of transporting them offsite for reuse, recycling, or shipment out of state. A tire retailer is a person, business, or other entity, which engages in the retail sale of tires in any quantity for any use or purpose by the purchaser other than for resale.

Disposal Prohibitions. Land disposal of scrap tires is prohibited.

Recordkeeping/Reporting. Permitted tire collectors, processors and haulers are required to submit an annual report that covers activities of the past year. For audit purposes, records shall be kept at the location in which scrap tire business is conducted or permittee must notify the Department of an alternate location.

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

Nebraska’s Scrap Tire Management Rules & Regulations

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.

Are you required to have a permit? You are required to obtain a permit if you are a tire collector, tire processor, tire hauler or a person owning property on which a collection site, unless you meet one of the exemptions. For example, if you are a business that removes tires from motor vehicles if no more than 500 scrap tires are kept on the premises, you are exempt from having to obtain a permit.
How many tires are stored? Do not store more than 500 tires at one time.
Are you complying with all recordkeeping requirements? Permitted tire collectors, processors and haulers are required to submit an annual report that covers activities of the past year.

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.
Keep tires stored indoors, if possible, or keep tire piles covered in order to prevent entrapment of water.
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.

Contacts

For more information, contact the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality (NDEQ) Waste Management Program at 402-471-2186.
To report a spill or leak, call the NDEQ spill hotline at 402-471-2186, or 402-471-4545 (weeknights, weekends and holidays).
To report an environmental incident or complaint, contact the nearest NDEQ Regional Office.

Related ECAR Fact Sheets

None.

Other Relevant Resources

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