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Everyone wins when old tires are removed from environment

Most people have seen them, old, abandoned scrap tires laying in wooded areas, in ditches, along waterways and just about everywhere else.

Everyone knows tires are eyesores, especially if located in or near residential or recreational areas.

What most people don’t know, however, is that tires, in and of themselves, are unusually dirty items, containing chemicals and heavy metals that can pollute lands and waters.

That’s why the Superior Watershed Partnership and Great Lakes Conservation Corps are teaming up to assist communities in cleaning up and properly disposing of old tires.

“Almost all communities in the Upper Peninsula have a scrap tire problem of some sort; tires illegally dumped in the woods, stockpiles of used tires or tires used for erosion control, etc.,” SWP Special Projects Coordinator Mindy Kantola, said in a recent Mining Journal story. “The problem is that most communities do not have the staff or resources to coordinate a tire clean-up project.”

SWP has been working on grant-funded scrap tire removal projects in the past through on-the-ground work from the GLCC.

This year, the effort is focused on the entire U.P. and is funded by a grant through the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy, the Journal story related.

Last year, SWP and GLCC assisted communities in Marquette, Baraga, Alger and Ontonagon counties by collecting scrap tires from a variety of areas, including urban, wooded and coastal sites, Kantola said.

The groups collected over 2,000 tires in one weekend after coordinating efforts with the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community and area residents.

This is an outstanding effort that pays dividends both short and long term. To contact SWP about a potential tire removal, email mindy@superiorwatersheds.org or call 906-228-6095 ext. 16.

For more information, visit superiorwatersheds.org.

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