LANSING, Mich. — The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) is distributing more than $2 million in grants to six road-surfacing projects to help cover costs for developing new markets for used vehicle tires.
These grants contribute to a more sustainable business model for the scrap tire industry through increased market opportunities for scrap tire processors, end users, and manufacturer, EGLE said, as well as supporting efforts to build sustainable markets for recycled tire materials in Michigan.
They traditionally have included support for essential equipment and materials that aid in the establishment of new markets, including various manufacturing processes, implementation and testing of paving materials, energy generation, and other innovative approaches.
This fiscal year funding will be used to support the following projects:
- Entech Inc. — $300,000 for equipment to support the expansion of the use of rubber-modified surface treatment for roads.
- St. Joseph County Road Commission — $202,860 to fund the paving of 18.1 lane miles of rubber-modified surface treatment.
- Michigan Technological University — $210,070 to fund the installation of a rubber-modified rubber-epoxy concrete bridge deck in St. Clair County and study its application as a lightweight bridge-decking preservation method.
- Washtenaw County Road Commission — $377,877 to fund the paving of four lane miles of Golfside Road with rubber-modified asphalt; the initiative will consumer over 7,600 scrap tires. This project will be a research partnership with Michigan Technological University.
- Clinton County Road Commission — $450,000 for a portable small-scale blending unit for devulcanized rubber-modified hot-mix asphalt binder, which will be used on 3.66 lane miles of Airport Road; this project will be a research partnership with Michigan State University.
- Road Commission of Kalamazoo County — $499,999 to cover the cost of paving 20 land miles of roads with rubber-modified surface treatment.
The Michigan Department of Transportation's State Transportation Innovation Council (STIC) grant, in partnership with the County Road Association of Michigan (CRA), related to Rubber Modified Asphalt and Rubber Modified Surface Treatment for road, is offering $25,000 in matching grants as well.
