TRA Forum Day to Debate UK Ban on Whole Tyre Exports

The Tyre Recovery Association’s (TRA) annual Forum Day on 16 September 2025 at the Ardencote Hotel, Warwick, could prove decisive for the UK’s end-of-life tyre (ELT) sector. Regulators, recyclers and campaigners will examine whether ministers will finally outlaw baled-tyre exports and deliver on promised “zero-waste” ambitions.

T8 exemption reform enters the home straight

In July 2025 Defra confirmed it will scrap the T8 exemption, a permit loophole long blamed for illegal stockpiles and environmental crime. All firms treating ELTs will need a full environmental permit once regulations land, with a three-month transition window. According to Defra’s policy paper, the change is designed to “drive up operator standards and cut malpractice”.

Calls grow to halt whole-tyre exports

The sector now sends tens of thousands of tonnes of baled tyres overseas each year—often to India—where open burning and poor processing have drawn media and parliamentary criticism. At an April Westminster Hall debate, Shadow Environment Minister Mary Creagh said she wanted “a little more action under this government” to stop the UK “outsourcing its waste problems”. Stakeholders want a “shred-only” export protocol and greater use of the 150,000-tonne spare UK recycling capacity.

Forum Day agenda

Key sessions

• Keynote: Georgia Elliott-Smith, CEO, Fighting Dirty
• Market and data insights: Astutus Research
• Illegal waste shipments: Environment Agency National Environmental Crime Unit
• Prospects for pyrolysis: Weibold Consulting
• Rubberised asphalt opportunities: European Tyre Recycling Association
• Retreading’s future: Vaculug Tyres
• Sustainable aviation fuel from ELTs: Wastefront Limited
• Resolving export barriers: George Eustice, Penbroath Consultants

What delegates want to learn

1. Timetable for T8 enforcement and guidance for affected operators.
2. Government stance on an export ban and how quickly rules could take effect.
3. Lessons from continental EU waste-tyre regulations that are now outpacing the UK.

Why the outcome matters

Eliminating the T8 exemption should curb rogue traders, while an export ban would keep valuable material on-shore, feeding domestic retread, crumb and pyrolysis plants. Together, the moves could cut carbon, create green jobs and align the tyre sector with wider circular-economy targets.

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Tagged with: UK tyre recycling, TRA Forum Day, T8 exemption, whole tyre export ban, circular economy, ELT regulation, waste tyres, Defra policy, tyre pyrolysis

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