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Philly's Tire Round-Up
Emily Clinch
 Philadelphia’s
Tire Round-Up Program has found a unique solution to an all-too-common
problem. Most neighborhoods have had an old, worn-out tire or two
left in the street. With the new program, illegally dumped tires aren’t
a source of annoyance any more — they’re a source of funds
for community growth.
Organized through the Block Captain system, as well as through other
community groups and Town Watch programs, the Tire Round-Up offers
a fifty-cent bounty for every tire collected. The funds are meant
to go for “worthwhile community cleanup or beautification projects,”
said public relations officer Cynthia Hite. Participating groups,
who must have registered with the Pennsylvania Department for Environmental
Protection, are limited to $500 total in bounties. There is one other
stipulation — all tires must have been legitimately littered.
Tires from auto repair shops, private lots, and other dealers are
not eligible for bounties, since those businesses are legally required
to pay for the proper disposal of their tires.
At the first round-up this summer, one community group and eight block
captains turned in a grand total of 989 tires. Eleanor Richardson,
block captain for the 500-600 block of North Uber Street in Philadelphia,
explained her block’s strategy for tracking down tires. “We
have a neighbor who has a truck and does it for us… on the other
blocks, the block captain doesn’t do it, so he’s the only
one who picks up the tires for the entire area.” Richardson’s
block uses the money from tire collection to buy seasonal flags, as
well as to plant flowers.
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