Hands-On Science Center Receives $35,552 Tire Program Grant

The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) today announced a grant of $35,522 for Hands-On Science Center from the state's Tire Environmental Act Program.

Hands-On Science Center, a science education hub in Tullahoma, will provide matching funds of $8,800 to build an eco-friendly outdoor area, the Eco-Explorer Zone, using approximately 1,200 scrap tires. The project costs $44,403 and will include a rubber mulch playground area and a vertical tire climbing structure.

"The Tire Environmental Act Program provides ways to retrieve old tires and repurpose them into community assets," said TDEC Deputy Commissioner Greg Young. "These grants help make that happen, and we look forward to the results that come from this process."

The project will be an expansion of other outdoor facilities that the non-profit was able to install last year with the assistance of funding from the tire grant. Hands-On Science Center will educate its visitors about recycling and sustainability through these exhibits and their quarterly newsletter.

The purpose of the Tire Environmental Act Program is to select and fund projects that best result in beneficial uses for waste tires. Projects must qualify for one of three categories: tire processing/recycling, tire-derived material use, or research and development. The program provides grant funding to eligible entities, including local governments, non-profit organizations, higher education institutions, K-12 schools, and for-profit businesses.

Tennessee established the Tire Environmental Fund in 2015. Upon the first retail sale of a new motor vehicle to be titled and registered in Tennessee, a flat fee based on the number of a vehicle's wheels is assessed. The fee goes into the fund, which is used for projects creating or supporting beneficial end uses for waste tires.

Since 2015, grantees have been awarded almost $9.2 million, and approximately 7.6 million tires or nearly 82,000 tons of scrap tires have been diverted from landfills. The tires are repurposed for use in rubberized asphalt, tire-derived aggregate, tire-derived fuel, granulated rubber porous flexible pavement, and other beneficial end uses that result in tires being diverted from landfill for a higher and better use.