Phase 1: Current Generation Tires

To prevent the problem from growing even larger, Phase 1 of the program keeps scrap tires out of the waste stream as they are generated.  When retailers install new tires on consumers' vehicles, the used tires removed from the vehicles are kept on-site by the retailers, picked up by collectors and transported directly to processing facilities for recycling.

This is done at no cost to the retailer.  The cost is covered entirely by the SSTC through the revenue generated from tire recycling fees collected throughout the province.
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Phase 2: Landfill Clean-Up

Any surplus revenue left each year over after Phase 1 is completed is devoted towards Phase 2 of the program.  This involves the clean-up and recycling of tire stockpiles built up over several decades in city, town, village and rural municipal landfills throughout Saskatchewan.  Municipal councils must register with the SSTC to have their landfills cleaned, and pass a bylaw prohibiting the disposal of scrap tires in their landfills in the future.  As of 2007, about half the municipal landfills in the province had been reclaimed, with the other half remaining to be addressed.

This clean-up is done once per landfill at no cost to the municipality.  It is covered entirely by the SSTC through surplus revenues generated from tire recycling fees once Phase 1 activities have been completed.
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Phase 3: Private Stockpiles

Now that Phase 2 is completed and all municipal landfills in the province have been cleared of tires, Phase 3 of the program can begin. This will involve the clean-up and recycling of tire stockpiles found on private properties throughout Saskatchewan. This is a pilot project that is currently limited to 28 RMs in southwest Saskatchewan. Following a successful clean up in this area the borders will be expanded to include additional areas. All tires collected will be recycled into useful products. Click here to go to the Black Gold Rush Phase 3 project.

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The tire recycling program delivered by the Saskatchewan Scrap Tire Corporation is among the most successful in Canada.

There are many groups who play a role in the program's success, and various stages to the process. They are:

Consumers:

The tire recycling program operates as a user-pay system. Consumers pay a tire recycling fee (TRF) on every new tire purchased in the province. The revenues generated through this fee are used entirely to fund the tire recycling program.

Tire Retailers:

There are over 1,200 retailers who sell tires in Saskatchewan, either as a stand-alone product or as part of new vehicles, farm implements, pieces of equipment, etc. The program requires that retailers collect a TRF on every new tire sold and remit it to the SSTC to cover the costs of the recycling program. When they put new tires on a consumer's vehicle, retailers also hold and store the old tires until they are collected by the programs.

Collectors:

There are a small number of collectors that SSTC contracts to assist in delivering the program. These individuals collect the used tires from the retailer locations across the province and transport them to processing facilities to be recycled. They also collect and transport the tires that get cleaned out of municipal landfills. Collector activities are funded by the SSTC through the tire recycling fees collected.

Processors:

There are currently two facilities in Saskatchewan where scrap tires are processed from their normal state into a reusable format, usually by chipping, shredding, crumbing or cutting. The process generally involves separating the steel and fibre from the rubber in the tires, a detailed process requiring specialized equipment.

Manufacturers:

Manufacturers are operations which recycle the waste rubber into the many reusable, marketable products available today. In some cases, the processors who refine the tires are also the manufacturers who make them into the value-added, recycled products.

SSTC:

SSTC oversees and coordinates the entire program, and is involved at every stage of the process. SSTC uses the TRF paid by consumers and remitted by retailers to fund the collection, transportation and processing of scrap tires, and the clean up of tire stockpiles.

Provincial Government:

Saskatchewan Environment maintains and enforces compliance with the legislation that governs the disposal and recycling of waste tires and requires retailers to participate in the program. It is important to note that the SSTC and the tire recycling program are not entities of the provincial government. They are not funded by government, and none of the funds collected from the TRF flow into any government account. The provincial government's primary role in this area is regulation.
 
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