ELT Recycling

The Municipality of Valdivia in Chile has recycled nearly 1,200 end-of-life tires through its municipal collection programme this year, diverting a difficult waste stream toward recovery instead of landfill.

A Municipal Collection Model That Works

The effort forms part of a wider sustainability strategy championed by Mayor Carla Amtmann, aimed at improving environmental management across the municipality. End-of-life tires rarely disappear on their own: they are bulky, non-biodegradable, and prone to illegal dumping and open burning when no formal collection channel exists. A structured route, backed by local government, is often the difference between a tire becoming waste and becoming feedstock.

Valdivia’s programme gathers tires in a range of sizes and consolidates them at the local level before handing them to a specialist recovery partner — a model other municipalities can replicate.

From Collection to Recovery

The collected tires are transported to Neuvol, a company that specializes in the recovery and recycling of end-of-life tires for new applications. Critically, the entire process of collection, transport and recycling is provided at no cost to the municipality, a financing structure that removes one of the most common barriers facing smaller cities.

Once recovered, end-of-life tires can follow several productive pathways. They can be processed into crumb rubber for civil engineering and rubberized asphalt, or converted through tire pyrolysis into recovered carbon black, pyrolysis oil and steel. Each route turns a liability into a commodity with real market value, and the choice of pathway depends on local end-markets, feedstock volume and available technology.

The Waste-to-Value Opportunity

Valdivia’s programme sits inside a broader regional shift. Municipalities across Latin America are formalizing end-of-life tire collection as the first step toward resource recovery — a first step that matters, because collection is the upstream requirement for every downstream recycling technology.

For operators and investors, the signal is clear. Reliable municipal feedstock, gathered and delivered through programmes like this one, lowers the risk profile of a pyrolysis or recovered carbon black project. Feedstock security is among the most important factors in plant economics, and collection schemes are how that security is built. A feasibility study is the natural next step for any region looking to move from collection to commercial recovery, helping establish volumes, logistics and the most viable processing route before capital is committed.

Learn More:

• Tire Pyrolysis: End-of-Life Tire Recovery
• Recovered Carbon Black Production
• Pyrolysis Oil from Waste Tires
• Feasibility Studies for Recovery Projects

Turn Municipal ELT Collection Into Commercial Recovery

Municipal collection programmes across Latin America are producing reliable end-of-life tire feedstock — the exact upstream supply that pyrolysis and recovered carbon black projects depend on. Klean Industries helps regions convert that collected material into commercial recovery capacity.

Ready to evaluate the opportunity for your region?

Contact Klean Industries about ELT recycling » GO.