Under current regulations, Poland’s tire management system covers 75% of the mass of tires placed on the market. The remaining quarter effectively “disappears,” because no one is formally responsible for ensuring it is properly managed. As a result, these tires are neither directed to energy recovery nor to recycling—and often end up dumped in forests. Experts argue that the recovery and recycling thresholds in force since 2007 should be updated, as higher targets could significantly improve outcomes. A larger share of recycling would bring not only environmental benefits, but also the opportunity to use recovered materials as valuable secondary raw inputs.
“End-of-life tires go to material recycling, but also to energy recovery—and unfortunately some of them end up in the environment,” Andrzej Kubik, Vice President of the Polish Association of Tire Recyclers (PSRO), told Newseria. “Under regulations that have not changed for 18 years, the mandatory recycling level in Poland is only 15%. Combined recycling and energy recovery amount to 75% under the law, but what happens to the remaining 25% is hard to say.”
According to the PSRO report “A Story That Goes Full Circle (2025)”, Poland ranks last in the European Union in terms of tire recycling and recovery rates, as well as the number of unmanaged tires. The country has some of the least demanding regulations among EU member states.
“Recycling accounts for roughly 15% to 30%, depending on the type of tire. Some categories are not subject to any recycling obligation at all. These include so-called solid tires, which are not covered by any legislation—meaning their producers do not have to worry about extended producer responsibility,” Kubik said. “The same applies to private importers of vehicles, because the tires that enter Poland with every car are not recorded in any way.”
These two streams of tires—outside the extended producer responsibility system—add up to several million units. Even if they are not recorded, once they wear out they still require proper treatment.
“To improve the current, absolutely unsatisfactory situation, we primarily need legislative changes,” the PSRO vice president said. “This is necessary for extended producer responsibility to work in full. Then we will have both higher recycling rates and fewer forests polluted with waste tires.”
Illegal dumping: thousands of tons abandoned
A PSRO survey of around 100 local governments and forest districts found that between 2019 and 2024 (through March), more than 1,000 tons of tires were abandoned at illegal dumpsites across 64 entities that were aware such dumps existed. This corresponds to an annual average of about 250 tons—roughly 25,000 tires—ending up in the environment each year. In 2024–2025, 840.63 tons (84,630 tires) of used tires were illegally stored, based on data collected from 69 units that had relevant information.
“Tires end up in the environment due to certain legislative shortcomings that have led municipal waste management to have little incentive to collect them, because such collection is not provided for in their budgets,” Kubik said. “Depending on court rulings, a tire is sometimes classified as municipal waste and sometimes not. As a result, collecting tires does not count, for municipal companies, toward fulfilling their recycling obligations.”
Proposed changes: higher targets and broader coverage
As Kubik notes, the industry has been pushing for changes to the law since 2021. In 2025, the Ministry of Climate and Environment conducted pre-consultations on new regulations. In October, the ministry said it sees grounds—across all pneumatic tires—for raising targets to 95% for recovery and 50% for recycling. It also announced plans to extend obligations to solid tires, whose use and market share are growing, leading to more waste. The ministry is considering recovery and recycling limits of 80% and 40%, respectively, for this category. Alongside changes to minimum thresholds, the ministry also plans to adjust product-fee rates for failing to meet the required levels.
“Of course, we as recyclers are capable of processing 100% of the tires placed on the domestic market,” Kubik said. “But 90% would already be fully satisfactory—especially since this would be split roughly half-and-half with cement plants, which would perform energy recovery.”
Burning vs. recycling: climate and economics pull in different directions
The PSRO report estimates that about 8.5 million tires (more than 85,000 tons) are burned each year in cement kilns in Poland. If they were redirected to mechanical recycling, an additional around 60,000 tons of CO₂ equivalent could be saved. A life-cycle environmental footprint analysis cited in the report found that the carbon footprint of mechanical tire recycling is four to five times lower than that of burning. However, market incentives make energy recovery more financially attractive.
“Material recycling—recovering secondary raw materials from end-of-life tires—is still a very labor- and energy-intensive process,” Kubik explained. “Under extended producer responsibility, producers are required to pay into that process. They therefore prefer to hand tires over, for example, to cement plants, where they actually receive money for them—like for alternative fuel. Tires have a very high energy value, over 30 gigajoules per ton, so from an economic standpoint it is more profitable to send them to incineration than to recycling.”
Capacity exists—but is underused
Annual tire recycling capacity among PSRO member companies is estimated at over 400,000 tons, which would allow them to process nearly 100% of the tires placed on the Polish market each year. Data obtained for PSRO from the climate ministry show that in 2024 this amounted to 405,000 tons. These figures do not include tires imported from abroad together with used cars purchased by private individuals.
“In total, there are more than 10 plants engaged in mechanical tire recycling across the country,” Kubik said. “Their potential is currently used at only about half. And it’s not just tires sourced from the Polish market. As recyclers, we also import tires from neighboring countries—the Baltic states of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia—as well as from Western Europe: Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, and even France.”
What recycling produces: valuable fractions and real-world uses
Used tires can be a source of multiple valuable secondary raw materials. Mechanical recycling produces three material fractions: rubber granulate (about 70%), steel wire (about 15%), and textile cord (about 15%).
“The steel fraction goes directly to steelworks as scrap,” Kubik explained. “Rubber granulate—the largest fraction—has many applications, including rubber-modified asphalt, broader road infrastructure, sports surfaces, and various products and technical goods. There are plenty of uses.”
In livestock farming, mats made from rubber granulate provide cushioning and thermal insulation. The material is also used in industrial flooring, anti-vibration pads, and a range of technical components. Textile cord can be used as alternative fuel in industrial processes, enabling a more sustainable form of energy recovery.
PSRO notes that Poland already has its first road surfaces built using tire-derived recyclates. Such solutions improve road strength and durability while also increasing grip, reducing noise, and shortening vehicle braking distance.
“The costs of doing nothing could be dramatic”
“The consequences of leaving the situation unchanged—as it has been for 18 years—could be dramatic both for the economy and for the environment,” Kubik warned. “Tires are a valuable source of secondary raw materials, whose value can be measured in billions of złoty. If they keep slipping away—whether as smoke from incineration or as pollution in the environment—we will suffer clear losses for the national economy.”
