Old tires are not household waste. How to dispose of them properly?”

The office received an inquiry: ‘Where can I recycle my old forklift tires?’

A brief online discussion followed, during which we did our best to formulate an answer based on our knowledge. As we talked, we also conducted some online research to provide more comprehensive information. It turned into a very meaningful consultation for our ‘You Ask – We Answer’ column. Here it goes:

I changed my car tires and I don’t know what to do with the old ones. Can I just leave them next to the dumpster?

The answer is short: No!

Old tires are not regular household waste, and leaving them next to containers is a violation of the law. And although many of you have seen tires dumped by the bins, here is what you need to know:

Why tires do not belong in the container?

Every year, approximately 40,000–50,000 tons of tires reach the end of their service life in Bulgaria—a quantity sufficient to cover over 200 football pitches. The materials used to manufacture them do not biodegrade in nature. Their indiscriminate disposal, even when left next to household waste containers, leads to:

1. Pollution of ravines, rivers, and roadsides (you would be hard-pressed to find a clean ravine in Bulgaria);
2. Turning them into breeding grounds for mosquitoes, as they collect rainwater;
3. When burned, they release highly toxic and carcinogenic compounds—biphenyl, anthracene, fluoranthene, and others.

What the law says?

The treatment of End-of-Life Tires (abbreviated as ELTs) is regulated by the Ordinance on the Requirements for the Treatment of End-of-Life Tires and the Waste Management Act. The ordinance explicitly prohibits:

1. the abandonment and illegal dumping of tires;
2. the landfilling of whole or shredded tires;
3. burning them outside of licensed facilities.

Penalties for violations: a fine of 150 to 500 euros for individuals who dispose of tires in unauthorized places, and 1,000 to 2,550 euros for illegal burning. For companies, fines can reach over 2,000 euros.

Where to dispose of your old tires in Varna?

1. Car service center or tire changing shop: the easiest way. By law, every facility that sells or changes tires is required to accept old tires from end-users free of charge and must provide a visible sign with information regarding this. The refusal to accept ‘old tires’ unless you replace (buy) them with new ones is not legally valid, but let’s just say it’s common practice. In other words, it simplifies the process of getting rid of your old ones without much hassle.
2. Licensed waste collection site: The Municipality of Varna maintains an official registry of sites within its territory where End-of-Life Tires (ELTs) can be dropped off. The registry is publicly available on the municipality’s website (under the ‘Ecology and Environmental Protection’ section).
3. Specialized waste management companies: There are companies operating in Varna and the region licensed for the collection, transport, and delivery of tires for recycling. Many of them accept one-time requests from individual citizens, not just from companies.

Tip: Before handing over your tires to a company, request a handover document. It serves as proof that you have fulfilled your legal obligation and have not disposed of the waste illegally.

Here is the list provided by the Varna Municipality:

List of companies recycling car tires in Varna Municipality

“What happens to the tires after they are handed over?” There are two main paths for recovery:

1. Retreading — a new tread is vulcanized onto a tire with a suitable casing, and it is returned to service. This extends the life of the tire and reduces the need for new ones.
2. Recycling — the tire is mechanically shredded, the metal cord and textile fibers are removed, and the remainder is ground into rubber granules. These are used in road construction, sports surfaces, shock-absorbing mats, and other rubber products. Through the pyrolysis process, tires are processed oxygen-free at high temperatures, and the resulting oil replaces fuel oil and industrial fuel.

Your 3 steps:

1. Do not discard tires next to a container, in a ravine, or in nature.
2. Take them to the service station where you had them replaced — it is obliged to accept them free of charge, or to a licensed facility/company.
3. Keep the handover document, if you have one.

The Public Environmental Center for Sustainable Development (PECSD) monitors and provides information on the topics of separate waste collection and recycling in Varna. If you have a question you would like to ask, please write to us.