The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) will accept applications beginning Monday, January 17 for grants from the state’s Tire Environmental Act Program (TEAP), according to a Friday press release by the department.
The grants are to fund projects that create or expand uses for waste tires. Such projects include tire recycling and processing, using materials such as aggregate that are derived from tires, initiating research and development in tire management, using tires for alternative fuels, or promoting innovation in infrastructure, the press release states.
“It is important to divert waste tires from our landfills,” Greg Young, deputy commissioner for TDEC, said in a statement. “These grants provide financial assistance to those who want to join that effort. The program is a valuable tool to protect the environment, and we encourage Tennesseans to be involved.”
According to the press release, those eligible to apply for TEAP grants include local governments, non-profits, higher education institutions, K-12 schools and for-profit entities. The deadline for submitting proposals is April 15. The press release clarifies that the grants are reimbursement grants, meaning an applicant will need to have start-up capital. The minimum grant request is $10,000, and the maximum grant request is $1 million, with varying levels of matching funds required.
TDEC reports that Tennessee produces approximately 6 million waste tires every year. The Tire Environmental Act Program has helped divert more than 3.6 million tires. The Tennessee General Assembly established the Tire Environmental Fund in 2015. Since then, grantees have been awarded almost $4.5 million. The fund is built through a flat fee assessed to the sale of new motor vehicles in Tennessee based on the number of wheels of the vehicle. The fee is $5 for a vehicle with four or fewer wheels, $10 for vehicles with more than four but fewer than 11 wheels, and $15 for vehicles with 11 or more wheels.
Further information on the program is available online at the TEAP website. More information about the TDEC grants management system is available here.
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Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Email tips to [email protected]
