Tire Environmental Act Program

Tire Environmental Act Program is sponsored by Tennessee Department of Environment & Conservation. Supports projects that create or expand beneficial uses for waste tires, including recycling and energy recovery.

TDEC Tire Environmental Act Program (TEAP) Tire Environmental Act Program (TEAP) Office of Sustainable Practices home The Tire Environmental Act Program provides reimbursement-based financial assistance to organizations for innovative infrastructure, research, or technologies that transform waste tires into useful materials.

Application Period Now Open The Tire Environmental Act Program Grant Application Period is currently open from January 15th through April 15th, 2026.

Please see below for additional information relating to the application process Click the button below to watch the webinar for more information about the program, including eligibility requirements, available funding amounts, matching requirements, as well as the different types of projects that are eligible to receive funding.

TEAP Informational Webinar Video Link In 2015, the Tennessee Automotive Association partnered with TDEC and the General Assembly to enact Public Chapter 525 that established the Tire Environmental Fund. Upon the first retail sale of a new motor vehicle that is to be titled and registered in Tennessee, a flat fee based on the number of the vehicle’s wheels is assessed.

The fee goes into the Tire Environmental Fund which is used to fund projects creating or supporting beneficial end uses for waste tires. The purpose of the Tire Environmental Act Program is to select and fund projects that best result in one of the beneficial end uses for waste tires identified below.

The Tire Environmental Act Program provides financial assistance (through reimbursement during a contract term) to organizations in Tennessee to purchase, install, and construct projects that fit into one of the following eligible project categories: tire recycling, tire derived product use, or research and development.

Many types of entities and organizations are eligible for funding such as local governments, state government, non-profits, k-12 schools, HEI's, and for-profit companies. Since 2015, grantees have been awarded over $12 million and nearly 9. 5 million tires , almost 107,000 tons of scrap tires, have been diverted from landfills.

These tires/scrap tires have been re-purposed for beneficial use in rubberized asphalt, tire derived aggregate (TDA), tire derived fuel (TDF), and granulated rubber porous flexible pavement. TEAP is a reimbursement grant, meaning a potential applicant will need to have access to start-up capital. The minimum grant request is $10,000 and the maximum grant request is $500,000 .

The applicant must, at a minimum, match the grant amount requested.

The applicant must specify the match percentage as one of the following: 80% Grant / 20% Match (specific to LEAs, higher education institutions, local government, or nonprofits); or 50% Grant / 50% Match; or Greater than 50% Match (amount specified) Items Not Eligible for Matching Funds Furniture, furnishings, and fixtures Salaries or wages of employees of for-profit entities Fees associated with permits and associated financial assurance Professional fees, including architectural and engineering services, and administration costs Other items not directly related to the diversion and beneficial reuse of Tennessee tires Expenses outside of the TEAP contract term To apply for the Tire Environmental Act Program grant, applicants must register for an account in the TDEC Grant Management System.

To learn how to register, visit TDEC's information page on the Grant Management System here . To go directly to to the Grant Management System, click the button below. TDEC Grant Management System Look through the grant manual to view detailed information about the grant and items to be included in the grant application.

To read the grant manual, click the button below.

Grant Manual for Calendar Year 2026 Eligible Applicants/Eligible Projects The purpose of TEAP is to develop and implement programs to enhance collection, transportation, and processing related to Tennessee markets for waste tires and to provide grants to encourage research, technologies, and processes to enhance the use of tires as alternative fuels or in innovative infrastructure developments.

Applicants must demonstrate how their project will improve or enhance beneficial end uses for scrap tires. TEAP provides financial assistance to eligible entities in Tennessee that fit into one, or more than one, of the following eligible project categories: Tire Recycling: Entities that collect, transport, receive, and process waste tires into a material for beneficial end use, as defined in the footnote below.

Some example projects include tire shredding, tire granulation, pyrolysis, and cryogenic processing. Proposals should identify viable end market(s) and associated partners. Tire-derived Material Use: Entities that enhance beneficial end uses of processed waste tires.

Some potential example projects include construction of permeable surfaces that have environmental and engineering advantages, molded or extruded rubber products, and use of tire-derived aggregate in construction erosion control, filtration, or the construction of infrastructure using tire-derived materials.

Research and Development: Entities that conduct research, testing, or development of beneficial uses or products derived from waste tires. Research and development must focus on waste tire management, the use of tires as alternative fuels, or the use of tires in innovative infrastructure developments. Proposals should identify viable end market(s) and associated partners.

Some potential example projects include rubberized asphalt research or research of alternative processing technology.

Grant open period begins/Announce solicitation Proposal submission deadline; begin review and processing of applications; determination of scope of services/work for grant awards Prepare grant offer to successful applicants Deadline to receive signed grant contracts for processing Target execution date for grants How is the program funded?

Fees are generated from the purchase of new motor vehicles to be titled and registered in the state: Five Dollars ($5. 00) for a motor vehicle with four (4) or fewer wheels, Ten Dollars ($10. 00) for a motor vehicle with more than four (4) but fewer than eleven (11) wheels, and Fifteen Dollars ($15.

00) for a motor vehicle with eleven (11) or more wheels. Funds Awarded - $537,916. 50 (Phase I); $1,340,248.

72 (Phase II) For Phase I Patriot purchased tire shredding equipment and upgraded the facility to allow their production to increase the two-shift total from 350,000 tires per year to 1,000,000 tires a year. For Phase II Patriot added additional equipment to their tire processing line to produce crumb rubber. Patriot is currently the largest tire recycling facility in Tennessee.

Scrap Tires Diverted from Landfills - 26,000 tons or 2. 1 million tires and increasing daily Rockwood Construction Recycling, LLC - City of Lebanon Waste to Energy Initiative Funds Awarded - $123,655. 00 Rockwood Construction Recycling, LLC was awarded funds to purchase tire shredding equipment for the purpose of supplying tire shreds to the City of Lebanon Waste to Energy Initiative project.

Problems developed with the metal in the tires and the tire shreds were discontinued as a fuel source at the gasification facility. Rockwood developed other end uses for the tire shreds such as tire derived aggregate (TDA), which has been approved by the TDEC Division of Water Resources for use as backfill in subsurface sewage disposal system field lines.

Scrap Tires Diverted from Landfills - 1,449 tons or 115,664 tires Friendly Environment has utilized TEAP funding to do facility upgrades. These upgrades allow the company to collect and process used tires into shreds.

The Friendly Environment Tire Grinding Project, through cooperation with local distributors, receives, processes, and chips waste tires to a particular size to be used in filling two end-market products, the Erosion Eel and Gutter Eel. The Erosion Eel and Gutter Eel products are designed for effective erosion control by utilizing rubber otherwise directly disposed of in a landfill.

Scrap Tires Diverted from Landfills - ~600,000 Metro Government of Nashville & Davidson County - Tree Surrounds in Downtown Nashville Funds Awarded - $95,6177. 00 Metro Nashville installed porous tree surrounds consisting of 1/8-inch granulated rubber chips on 2nd Avenue in downtown Nashville.

This application of processed waste tires is both economical – cheaper than the conventional alternative, while requiring less maintenance – and environmentally friendly. The porous tree surrounds allow water to pass through the material to help prevent cracking, which will benefit the trees by allowing better rain water absorption and creating less stress on the root system of the trees.

The tree surrounds will also increase safety and reduce maintenance costs to the City by eliminating sidewalk heaving/cracking and preventing tripping hazards. Scrap Tires Diverted from Landfills - ~53 tons or ~1,197 tires Tellico Plains - Town Park Trail Improvements Funds awarded: $116,785. 00 The Town of Tellico Plains, located in Monroe County, reconstructed an existing pathway in the Tellico Plains Town Park.

Scope of this project included removing the existing six-foot-wide trail and replacing it with a ten-foot-wide flexi-pave surface. Projected scrap tires diverted from landfills: ~6,000 Tennessee State Parks - Henry Horton Adventure Park Funds awarded - $13,997. 50 Henry Horton State Park in Marshall County constructed an Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) accessible porous pathway containing granulated rubber.

This ADA compliant pathway provides access to a wheelchair accessible playground, learning, and adventure area. This project in Marshall County had additional private partners, including Blue Cross/Blue Shield and GameTime, that provided financial support for the construction of the playground, learning, and adventure area. Scrap tires diverted from landfills: ~1,600 Tennessee State Parks - T.

O. Fuller State Park “Tires to Trails” Project Funds Awarded - $250,000. 00 The Tires to Trails project installed a porous pathways consisting of 1/8-inch granulated rubber chips at the former golf cart paths at T.

O. Fuller State Park. The porous pathway is one of the longest rubber-bearing porous trails in the United States at close to three miles of pathways.

Tires were collected from the neighborhoods and area adjacent to the park, which supported city beautification and citizen engagement. This project turned an unsightly community liability – dumped waste tires – into comfortable outdoor walking trails. Porous trails are also more environmentally friendly than traditional nonporous pavement because they allow water to pass through – avoiding some storm water runoff.

. Scrap Tires Diverted from Landfills - ~480 tons or ~36,000 tires Town of Troy - Trojan Park Porous Pathway Funds awarded - $198,802. 50 The Town of Troy, located in Obion County, constructed a new, ADA compliant porous pavement pathway located at Trojan Park.

Trojan Park. As the park is centrally located, it hosts a community center, several athletic facilities, and playgrounds. With frequent community visitation, and lights (for night-time use) available on the current trail, it is a very visible project in West Tennessee.

This project has numerous partners including the design/engineering team at A2H and Recreation Education Services. Projected scrap tires diverted from landfills: ~5,000 University of Tennessee/Tennessee Department of Transportation - Rubberized Asphalt Projects Funds Awarded - $114,995.

00 The University of Tennessee and the Tennessee Department of Transportation partnered and were awarded funds to install, test, and analyze three rubberized asphalt projects. The projects were located in Washington, Rhea, and Davidson Counties. Each project is currently being evaluated for longevity and performing well.

Scrap Tires Diverted from Landfills - 26 tons or 2,115 tires Community Programs Manager Office of Sustainable Practices christopher. pianta@tn. gov