Consumer

Recycle Old Tires for Free, Help the Environment April 14 in Alpine

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Residents of Alpine, Pine Valley and unincorporated communities can get rid of their old tires for free — and help the environment, their neighborhoods and local roads at the same time — by recycling them April 14 at a “Tire Amnesty Day” event in Alpine.

The event will be held from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Albertson’s parking lot at 2955 Alpine Blvd.

“This is a great way to turn a problem into something good,” said County Supervisor Dianne Jacob. “Recycled tires will be shredded and re-used to resurface roads and to create safe mulch for gardens and playgrounds.”

California outlawed disposing of tires in landfills in 1993 and illegally abandoned tires in rural areas can create eyesores, fire threats and breeding grounds for mosquitoes that can transmit West Nile virus and encephalitis.

Recycled tires in California are used as rubberized asphalt, shredded and ground to be used in new products such as flooring material and patio decks, and burned as fuel, among other uses. Last month, people turned in nearly 1,500 tires at a County-sponsored Tire Amnesty Day in Valley Center.

The April 14 event is being sponsored by the County of San Diego Recycling Program with support from the Department of Environmental Health and the Alpine Chamber of Commerce.

Rules for the event include:

  • Only residents from unincorporated communities can take part.
  • People can recycle up to nine tires per vehicle. Tires should be relatively clean of dirt.
  • Only passenger-vehicle tires are accepted (No tires from business vehicles, semi-trucks, tires with rims or tires with wheels are allowed).

For more information, or to ask about recycling more than nine tires, larger tires, or tires with rims, people can call the County’s Recycling and Household Hazardous Waste line at 1-877-R-1-EARTH (1-877-713-2784).

Gig Conaughton is a communications specialist with the County of San Diego Communications Office. Contact