Environmental Costs - Understated Effects

Concerning the extraction and production of rubber, the hidden costs are significant. The shipment of resources by road, rail, water, or air necessitates very significant petroleum use.

Because of the success of age-resistors and the general strengthening of tire composition, rubber tires are very difficult to dispose of. When they are not burned (either directly into the atmosphere, or in cement kilns), they are usually piled out of sight; while this may seem reasonably harmless, several problems arise; leaching of petrochemicals into soil, create lifeless zones; erosion and the destruction of habitat; provide mosquito and other insect breeding grounds, which could cause health concerns.




Tire piles, as shown above, are no small problem.