Old end-of-life tyres, if abandoned in the natural environment, pose a serious environmental threat. Thanks to the Pfu Zero project, it is possible to recover and recycle them.
They are one of the scourges of the century: end-of-life tyres abandoned in the natural environment represent one of the most damaging pollution factors for the ecosystem. A threat comparable to plastic bags dispersed at sea, to counter which both institutions and trade associations are working together, sharing the objective of removing these special-category waste items and, above all, of raising awareness among children and adults of the need for the correct management of discarded tyres. Prevention and the development of a solid environmental conscience can achieve more than any damage-repair campaign: a central concept around which the Pfu Zero campaign is built.
Pfu, meaning "pneumatici fuori uso" (end-of-life tyres): this is the adversary to be defeated. A permanent adversary — if left at sea or in the natural environment it takes hundreds of years to degrade — but one that, if managed correctly, is entirely recyclable. The majority of worn-out casings can in fact be shredded to produce rubber granulate; a reusable material in road and sports-surface paving, as well as for insulation and urban furnishings. It is precisely the objective of turning an environmental threat into a resource for new uses that prompted the association Marevivo and the Consorzio Ecotyre — which counts over four hundred member manufacturers and importers of automotive tyres — to launch the project "Pfu Zero nelle Isole Minori" on the Island of Elba, in Tuscany, aimed at the extraordinary collection of discarded abandoned casings. An initiative sponsored by the Ministry of the Environment, by Federparchi-Europarc Italia and by the Corpo forestale dello Stato, in collaboration with Ancim (Associazione nazionale comuni isole minori) and the Guardia costiera.
Following the Island of Elba, similar interventions are planned in Lampedusa and Linosa, in Ustica and in Pantelleria. The initiative forms part of the broader project by Consorzio EcoTyre, named "Pfu Zero", for mapping situations of abandoned end-of-life tyres reported by local authorities, associations and citizens, with a view to carrying out free extraordinary removal operations, at no cost to local administrations. Specifically, it is possible to report an abandoned Pfu dump simply by visiting the website www.pfuzero.ecotyre.it.
"It is essential that citizens are aware of the resources available to them: Pfu are waste items that must absolutely not be abandoned in the natural environment — stated Enrico Ambrogio, president of EcoTyre — but should instead be taken to a tyre dealer, who is required to collect them free of charge. It will then be organisations such as Consorzio Ecotyre that ensure the correct recovery of end-of-life casings." The law is on the side of the environment.