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SA’s waste tyre plan is still not in place

May 13, 2026 REDISA, Recycling and Economic Development Initiative of South Africa, Waste tyres


SA’s waste tyre plan is still not in place

 

Media statement by the Recycling and Economic Development Initiative of South Africa. 

The Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment has spent almost ten years and millions of rand trying to produce an Industry Waste Tyre Management Plan. Yet, after years of drafting, consultation, publication and withdrawal, the country is still no closer to a workable system for effectively addressing South Africa’s dangerous waste tyre crisis.

 

The continued delay carries real environmental and economic costs. Waste tyres remain in the system, depots are overflowing and any potential waste industry investors remain unable to move at scale without regulatory certainty. Waste tyre pollution is a serious problem that poisons groundwater, fuels dangerous fires which release toxic emissions, and burdens already strained waste systems - posing serious long-term public health risks. Waste collectors and transporters are left without jobs, as there is no functional system.

 

During the recent consultation on a future plan, held with industry on 29 of April, the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) said it recorded R774 million in tyre levy collections for 2024/25, with R403.578 million allocated to tyre management, while only 48 926 tonnes of waste tyres were processed against estimated waste generation of around 240 000 tonnes.

 

The Recycling and Economic Development Initiative of South Africa (REDISA), internationally recognised as a leader in tyre recycling, says the latest Industry Waste Tyre Management Plan process did little to reassure the industry. Instead of presenting a clear plan, the session was largely a presentation on how the withdrawn 2024 plan would be updated - followed by a request for stakeholders to submit written comments by Friday, 8 May 2026 to “inform the drafting” of the plan, to be followed by another round of comments. “This is not a circular economy. It is just a circular process,” said Stacey Davidson of REDISA. “The industry is being asked to keep commenting while waste tyres keep piling up.”

 

South Africa has required a workable waste tyre plan since REDISA was unlawfully removed as waste tyre manager by the Zuma government in 2017. The new planning process began in 2019, a plan was published in March 2024, withdrawn in 2025, and a new six-month update process is now under way. This means the sector remains trapped in planning mode while recyclers, processors and collectors wait for the certainty needed to raise funding, invest in plants, expand capacity and create jobs.

 

REDISA is also concerned that the consultation material contained errors, contradictory figures and questionable assumptions. The session appeared to rely on unclear data, including disputed replacement-tyre assumptions, dubious claimed processing figures labelled as “audited”, and major discrepancies between previous depot stockpile figures and the figures now being presented. “These are not simple spreadsheet mistakes,” said Dr. Chris Crozier of REDISA. “If the data is wrong, the targets will be wrong. If the targets are wrong, the budget will be wrong. And if the budget is wrong, South Africa will end up with yet another plan that cannot work.”

 

REDISA said the waste tyre sector does not need another plan to make a plan. It needs an implementable system with a budget, clear roles, credible data, enforceable timeframes and operational accountability. The withdrawn 2024 plan was previously criticised for not meeting the basic requirements, including proper budgeting, timing, responsibilities and reliable data. “South Africa has already seen a waste tyre system work,” Stacey Davidson said. “REDISA grew recycling rates from 4% to 55% between 2013 and 2017. The country does not lack experience. It lacks the political and administrative will to finalise a practical plan.”

 

REDISA calls on The Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment to stop recycling the same failed process and urgently produce a funded, practical and enforceable Industry Waste Tyre Management Plan.

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