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Environment
James Robert Innes, Postdoctoral Research Associate in Sustainable Polymer Materials, University of Bradford

One-and-a-half billion tyres wasted annually – there's a better way to recycle them

Maksim Safaniuk/Shutterstock

Production of natural rubber has claimed over 4 million hectares of forest in south-east Asia since 1993 according to a recent study. This destruction of tropical forest for rubber plantations is thought to be two to three times greater than previous estimates.

Natural rubber is vital to tyre production since it is stronger, more wear-resistant and more flexible than synthetic rubber. Multiple blends of natural and synthetic rubber are used for making different parts of a tyre.

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