South Africa was once a leader in waste tyre recycling on the African continent. Today, we are struggling to manage collections and growing stockpiles.
That reversal should concern all of us, not only because of environmental risk but also because it reflects a deeper failure to convert waste into economic opportunity.
Each year the country generates about 250,000 tonnes of waste tyres. The technologies required to recycle them (such as crumb rubber production, pyrolysis and materials recovery) are not experimental. They are mature, widely used and, in parts of Europe and Asia, capable of near-total recovery rates.
There is no reason South Africa should be unable to convert waste tyres into viable products at scale. Yet we are falling behind. The problem is not technological, but structural.
Waste tyre recycling does not succeed simply because collection targets are announced. It succeeds when collection, processing, independent testing, standards development, applied research and skills development operate in a co-ordinated industry system. When these elements reinforce one another, markets gain confidence, investment follows and recycling becomes commercially stable. When they are separated, the system weakens.
There is no reason South Africa should be unable to convert waste tyres into viable products at scale. Yet we are falling behind. The problem is not technological, but structural.
In 2014-17 South Africa was building such a co-ordinated framework. When the Recycling and Economic Development Initiative of South Africa (Redisa) partnered with universities, including the establishment of the Centre for Rubber Science and Technology at Nelson Mandela University, the objective was clear: technical problems in the recycling sector would be solved locally. Applied research was linked directly to industry constraints. Funding was used not only to move tyres, but also to build the scientific and industrial capability required to sustain a circular economy.
The partnership supported postgraduate students, funded focused research programmes and built multidisciplinary teams across chemistry, engineering, computer science and materials science. At one point more than 20 postgraduate students, funded by Redisa, were at the Stellenbosch and Nelson Mandela universities working on tyre-recovery and resultant product valorisation challenges. In a country with limited specialised expertise in rubber science, this represented a meaningful investment in national capability.
Redisa supported the development of the Product Testing Institute (PTI), an independent tyre testing facility. Globally, tyre manufacturers are subject to independent verification alongside in-house testing. In South Africa, verification has largely relied on documentation from foreign suppliers. The PTI was designed to build domestic testing capacity and strengthen credibility in the local market.
The ambition extended beyond compliance. The PTI included plans for research laboratories to support product development and encourage improved manufacturing standards. The underlying understanding was straightforward: you cannot regulate your way into a circular economy — you must build the institutions that allow industry to innovate with confidence.
Redisa treated tyre recycling as a connected industry, not merely a waste problem. When the Redisa plan was halted in 2017, that integrated system began to unravel swiftly. Research projects lost continuity, student funding was frozen, and plans to expand independent testing facilities stalled. The steady progress that had been building technical skills and industry confidence slowed dramatically. What followed was a narrower focus on collection and depot management, without the same support for research, testing and long-term industrial development.
Redisa treated tyre recycling as a connected industry, not merely a waste problem. When the Redisa plan was halted in 2017, that integrated system began to unravel swiftly.
Nearly a decade later, South Africa has not rebuilt that integrated model. Collection itself is under strain. Overfull depots and accumulating stockpiles are visible reminders that the system is not functioning effectively. That failure must be addressed urgently. But collection is only the first step. The deeper challenge lies in converting tyres into reliable, certified products that markets will adopt.
Waste tyre processors do not typically fail because they lack machinery. They struggle because they cannot easily demonstrate that their outputs meet recognised standards, or because there is no clear certification pathway that gives customers and financiers confidence. This makes it difficult to secure stable markets for their products. They require credible testing, ongoing technical refinement and sustained problem-solving support. Most small and medium-sized enterprises cannot fund that work alone. Without structured national backing, these technical bottlenecks remain.
The loss of the system was an enormous setback. The Centre for Rubber Science and Technology, the PTI, postgraduate training and industry-linked research formed part of an ambitious, achievable framework that could have positioned the country as a continental pioneer in waste tyre recovery and materials innovation.
The issue is not whether South Africa can recycle its tyres. The technology exists and the expertise is present. The question is whether we are prepared to rebuild the co-ordinated industry system that allows these elements to function together over time. Without that collective commitment, waste will remain a burden instead of becoming a driver of economic and environmental renewal.
• Prof Hlangothi is director of the Centre for Rubber Science and Technology at Nelson Mandela University.
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.