Northern Territory business case - circular economy for tyres

OVERVIEW

With support from Northern Territory stakeholders, Tyre Stewardship Australia (TSA) engaged Urban EP to deliver a circular economy business case for end of life tyres.

The Northern Territory has low recovery rates for tyres and a lack of investment in the necessary infrastructure to ensure the viability of a tyre recovery sector. This is historically driven by low, dispersed volumes and the lack of scale economies, fragmented regulatory settings, and an absence of supply chain infrastructure and local end markets.

KEY INFO

Location:

Northern Territory

Stakeholders:

NT Government TSA

Solutions:

Circular Economy

THE BRIEF

TSA sought to drive change in support of improved tyre recovery in the NT, through the preparation of a business case that:

• Clarifies benefits in recovering tyres to a high level across the NT

• Points to an optimal pathway (technology, product, and end market combinations) for recovering tyres

• Sets out the respective roles and interventions of parties to alleviate barriers to increased tyre recovery in the NT.

Urban EP was requested to:

• Characterise business as usual practices in managing end of life tyres

• Describe the operating environment (supply chains, market dispositions, regulatory landscape, and geographic and logistical features relevant to NT)

• Propose practical alternatives to the disposal and dumping of end of life tyres, with a full explanation of underlying costs and revenue sources, and tyre recovery risk characteristics

• Put forward a recommended recovery path for recovering tyres from the NT, along with the steps needed to ensure relevant parties could confidently act in bringing about the preferred tyre recovery solution.

THE RESULTS

Urban EP presented a detailed explanation of the current status of tyre management activities and recovery capacity across the NT, the extent of existing supply chains, and a detailed analysis of options to lift tyre recovery through a combination of regulatory reform, supply chain stimulus, and end market development.

The team was additionally entrusted to engage with diverse stakeholders on TSA’s behalf (i.e. regulators, the tyre recycling sector, local councils and mining operators) to help drive interest in and willingness to partner towards new circular economy opportunities.

In closing the project, Urban EP facilitated a workshop day in Darwin to drive buy in to a series of follow up activities drawing on business case findings. This resulted in NT and TSA stakeholders coming together to pilot tyre recovery applications in the NT (in road construction), and supported the NT Government in deciding to award funding to a tyre recovery project based in Katherine.