KINGSTON, Jamaica — A St Ann-based company, SKD Haulage and Distribution (SKDP) is spearheading a multimillion-dollar project to utilise old tyres in the preparation of road surfaces across the island.

The US$600,000 waste-to-profit initiative is scheduled to begin by July, and the company projects that it can absorb up to 60 per cent of waste tyres in Jamaica over the next decade.

CEO of SKDP, Sherold Philibert, at the launch of the initiative held at the University of the West Indies (UWI) on Wednesday, said that he is now in discussions with the local authorities and asphalt companies to have the rubber ingredient added to the asphalt mix.

According to Philibert the use of rubber will reduce the cost of preparing the road surfacing material per mile, as well as removing the huge stockpile of used tyres that have become an environmental threat on the island.

He added that rubber lasts twice as long as standard asphalt and reduces road repair and maintenance costs.

“The elasticity enables asphalt rubber roads to hold up better under traffic loads, and resist cracking and weather damage in hot and wet conditions,” Philibert said.

Operating out of a recycling plant in Discovery Bay, St Ann, Philibert said that SKDP has already secured the assistance of a number of local tyre dealers and the cooperation of the National Solid Waste Management Agency (NSWMA) and JAMPRO in the project.

Meanwhile, Minister of Industry, Investment, and Commerce, Anthony Hylton, speaking at the launch of the project said that the initiative will create jobs, and alleviate the problem of frequent fires at the Riverton City landfill in Kingston.

“This investment will, undoubtedly, encourage other local and, perhaps, global investments in this emerging industry. The production of crumb rubber from recycling of tyres forms part of the ‘waste for profit’ scheme that several Ministries and agencies are promoting,” Hylton said.

“The raw materials are found right here in Jamaica, in very large quantities. This will open up opportunities for many other players in the industry. In addition to the absorption of used tyres, it will decrease the Government’s costs associated with solid waste disposal, and reduce the number of new landfills required to store used tyres,” he said.

It is estimated that over one million used tyres are discarded annually in Jamaica, occupying large spaces at landfills and tyre repair outlets.