End-of-life tire management in Colombia

Extended producer responsibility (EPR) is a policy tool that extends the responsibility of the producers to cover the management of their end-of-life products. By shifting the burden of end-of-life management costs from... [ view full abstract ]

Extended producer responsibility (EPR) is a policy tool that extends the responsibility of the producers to cover the management of their end-of-life products. By shifting the burden of end-of-life management costs from municipalities to producers, it aims to provide incentives for producers to internalize the environmental costs, such as through produce design changes, throughout the life cycle of their products. In 2005, Colombia adopted the principle of extended producer responsibility into its first national policy on hazardous waste management (Decree 4741). Since 2007, Colombian EPR regulations had entered into force covering waste streams such as pesticide packaging, pharmaceutical waste, car and small batteries, used tires, light bulbs and computers. Seven waste streams are currently subject to the EPR regulations and additional waste electrical and electronic equipment and packaging waste are expected to be added to the EPR programs. While Colombian EPR systems have expanded with regards to the number of covered waste, participating organizations, collection points and the level of collection, these systems have also faced significant challenges in the context of emerging markets.

In this study, we examined the evolution and current states of the tire EPR system in Colombia to analyze the system’s performance and challenges. In Colombia, the used tires had increasingly posed significant concerns related to the inappropriate disposal and burning. For the proper management of end-of-life tires, the Resolution 1457 of 2010 established the financial and performance obligations on about 220 producers and importers of tires. In response to this Resolution and its EPR responsibilities, four collective and eight individual EPR programs has established. Particularly, the Rueda Verde, a collective EPR program that covers 91% of the tire market, has led the development of a tire EPR system by establishing 179 collection points and 760 institutional partnerships, achieving 35% of the collection goal in 2015. About 27% of the collected tires were retreaded, while the rest were mainly crushed into 1-4 mm of granulated rubber for further reuse.

However, despite such advancement, significant challenges remain. One of the biggest issues is a low demand for recycled tire products such as rubber pellets and associated burden and operational difficulties for waste management companies. Other issues include weak regulatory control, non-compliance and free riders, no link to product innovation, unrealistic collection targets, lack of commitment or incentives for consumers and retailers, and lack of cooperation among actors and/or EPR programs. These observed challenges point that the Colombian EPR regulations adopted foreign experiences without a full adjustment and proper contextualization.