Every year, our cars release nearly 80,000 tonnes of dust into the environment from tire wear. These tiny particles, invisible to the naked eye, disperse in the air, infiltrate the soil, flow into rivers and end up on our plates. This is the alarming observation drawn up by Agir pour l’Environnement, in a new study published this Monday.
80,000 tonnes of fine particles, nearly 2000 chemical molecules…
By analyzing tires from six major brands, the association identified 1,954 chemical molecules, including 785 presenting serious risks to health and the environment. A real harmful cocktail.
“We discovered 111 substances that are highly toxic for aquatic environments, 85 potentially fatal if ingested, and 112 carcinogenic, mutagenic or reprotoxic molecules”explains Stéphen Kerckhove, general director of the association.
These ultrafine particles, from rubber and chemical additives, are emitted with each wheel rotation. The study estimates that a vehicle releases between 65 and 150 mg of rubber per kilometer traveled, or up to 40 kg over its lifespan. Micro and nanoparticles that escape radar: 99.97% of them are not even measured by official air monitoring networks.
Tire tracks even in the oysters and vegetables
Once in the environment, these particles do not disappear. Washed out by rain, they reach rivers and agricultural soils. This is how Swiss researchers found tire additives in 30% of the fruits and vegetables tested, while rubber particles were detected… in French oysters. Salmon farmers in North America have even observed a reduction in fertility linked to the ingestion of particles containing 6PPD, a very widespread chemical agent.
“What we call clean air or preserved nature is already impregnated with residue from our tires” alert Stéphen Kerckhove.
But what is the direct effect on our health? The question remains unresolved according to Olivier Charles, Climate, Energy and Transport campaign manager, contacted by True Medical. According to the NGO, this “invisible” pollution exposes the entire population, and in particular children, to increased risks of cancer, neurological, respiratory and cardiovascular disorders.
“The problem is that there are very few studies being done, we are really at the beginning of research on this subject. It is very complicated to have an overview of the impact of all these molecules on the body. We do not even know what concentration there really is in the environment” evokes Olivier Charles.
To fill these gaps, the NGO therefore strongly requests that theNational Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health Safety (ANSES) launches new national surveys.
Everything does not work for the industry, which takes care of a tire
On the manufacturers’ side, we do not deny the problem. “Over its entire lifespan, approximately four years, a car tire loses 2.5 kg of rubber”recognizes Dominique Stempfel, president of the Tire Union.
According to him, manufacturers “are working to develop tires in terms of safety and eco-responsibility“, gradually replacing petroleum-based products with plant-based materials. Some prototypes already contain dandelion rubber or oils from rapeseed or orange peel.
But for Acting for the Environment, this progress remains insufficient given the scale of the problem. “If vehicles become heavier and more powerful, as is the case with electric cars, tire wear increases. We lose on one side what we gain on the other” estimates the NGO.
The association calls for a legislative boost
Faced with this silent threat, the association calls for profound change:
- Lift industrial secrecy on the chemical composition of tires;
- Create European labeling specifying their toxicity;
- Submit the tires to a marketing authorization depending on their dangerousness;
- And integrate wear emissions into air quality policies.
“Citizens have the right to know the exact composition of the products they buy, and with which, sometimes, they poison themselves”pleads Olivier Charles.
Acting for the Environment hopes that this study will serve as a shock, before this toxic dust continues, silently, to spread everywhere around us.