The announcement was made at the Global Tyre Challenge event and sets entrepreneurs the challenge of coming up with new solutions to eliminate the problems of tyres as an environmental issue.
Approximately 100 tyres are turned into waste every 15 minutes in Scotland, a fact that was illustrated with a display made up of 100 tyres supplied and delivered by ACVM. To combat this statistic, SEPA has committed to developing a new Sector Plan setting targets to combat tyre waste and reduce criminal behaviours, such as tyre dumping, related to the industry.
Speaking at the announcement, SEPA’s Chief Executive, Terry A’hearn, said: ‘The partnership between SEPA and Entrepreneurial Scotland taps into the most creative assets at our disposal to find some truly innovative approaches to reduce or reuse the number of waste tyres circulating in our economy. By working together, we have the potential to create economic opportunities that provide tangible benefits for environmental and social success in Scotland.’
Working closely with SEPA, Entrepreneurial Scotland will develop ideas as part of their Saltire Fellowship Programme in order to find new sustainable business opportunities. The Saltire Fellowship Programme cultivates ambitious individuals in order to create future industry leaders.
James Stuart, Managing Director of Entrepreneurial Scotland, said: ‘Partnering with SEPA is a fantastic example of how collaboration can solve real challenges and support Scotland in becoming the most entrepreneurial society in the world. The businesses of tomorrow will need to be much more resource efficient going forward and we believe that entrepreneurial thinking will be the key to unlocking Scotland’s potential and the way to successfully address some of our, and the world’s, biggest challenges.’
The future of this programme could have big ramifications within the automotive industry and it’s something that ACVM are proud to be involved with from the outset.
Jim Blair, ACVM Operations Manager, said: ‘ACVM is delighted to supply 100 tyres to help support the launch of this great initiative. As one of the UK’s leading fleet suppliers, we are only too aware of the great quantities of tyres that need to be recycled. We look forward to seeing how this programme progresses and discovering the new ways we can build a more sustainable future for the automotive industry.’
The event was held on Earth Overshoot Day 2017, the date marking when more natural resources have been consumed than can be renewed or sustained by the planet in the course of a year.
