6 ms·

When you drive, the tread of your tires becomes more and more shallow, and at some point, it's so shallow that they need to be replaced. It happens, because the

by xyzzyz 6y ago

When you drive, the tread of your tires becomes more and more shallow, and at some point, it's so shallow that they need to be replaced. It happens, because the tires get abraded as you drive, shedding some of their surface. Where do you think the surface goes? Tire pollution is very real. Nobody says that the pollution isn't caused by combustion: it's another major source of pollution. Tire pollution is in some ways worse than combustion pollution these days. Modern gasoline-burning engines (and modern, properly maintained diesel ones) mostly emit volatile, gaseous pollution. However, tire pollution consists of solid microparticles, that contribute to significantly to airborne dust, which can be measured through PM2.5 and PM10.

bamboozled 6y ago
I’ve thought about how bad this must be for years. It’s hard to imagine all of the tyre dust that’s been lost into the environment over the years. Not just from cars, also commercial airliner tyres
- dredmorbius 6y ago
  Airline tire deposition is almost entirely witin the threshold / toucchdown zone portion of airport runways. The skid marks from sudden wheel spin-up and loading are highly evident: https://thumbs.dreamstime.com/z/burbank-california-usa-april-skid-marks-runway-airport-near-los-angeles-117262723.jpg https://thumbs.dreamstime.com/z/burbank-california-usa-april... https://youtube.com/watch?v=DFOynlRYT54 https://youtube.com/watch?v=DFOynlRYT54 There's effectively no wear during flight
jurip 6y ago
Another thing related to tire pollution is asphalt dust. Road surface gets used up, too, especially in places where studded winter tires are popular, and it's a significant source of airborne particulate matter: https://grapevine.is/news/2020/11/30/winter-tires-have-huge-impact-on-air-pollution/ https://grapevine.is/news/2020/11/30/winter-tires-have-huge-...
- lumberingjack 6y ago
  My state just banned studied winter tires because it was tearing up the streets too much and it really hasn't snowed and quite a long time as the climate changes
  - fingerlocks 6y ago
    Which state is this?
    - dredmorbius 6y ago
      Unsure of OP, but snow tyres are banned in Alabama, Texas, Florida, Maryland (exception five mountain counties), Louisiana, Hawaii, Illinois, Minnesota, Mississippi and Wisconsin, according to thi (undated, though possibly from Sept 2020 by IA WBM: https://web.archive.org/web/*/https://itstillruns.com/states-not-allow-studded-tires-5468627.html https://web.archive.org/web/*/https://itstillruns.com/states...) article: https://itstillruns.com/states-not-allow-studded-tires-5468627.html https://itstillruns.com/states-not-allow-studded-tires-54686...
      - xyzzyz 6y ago
        Snow tires are not banned there, studded tires are.
        dredmorbius 6y ago
        That's what I'd meant, as the link makes clear.
ajnin 6y ago
That "gaseous pollution" is mostly CO2, a gas responsible for global warming and perhaps the biggest environmental threat we are facing right now. You can't limit yourself to comparing the amount released of both pollutants and not consider the scale of things. CO2 spreads all over the planet and remains in the atmosphere basically forever, until it is taken away, and particulate pollution is local and does not remain in the air for very long. Both should be addressed but they are not interchangeable.
lumberingjack 6y ago
A lot of the surface of the tire gets turned into gas particulate
ouid 6y ago
Particulate pollution does not stay suspended in the air indefinitely. When wind blows in the desert, dust is kicked up and the particulate pollution is temporarily quite high. Then time passes or it rains and everything is clean again. The world is made of particulate that has come to rest.
- mint2 6y ago
  When it rains those particles run off in to the streams, where they can leach chemicals out, especially as the materials degrade in uv light and oxygen with their massively increased surface area as particles vs being part of a tire. And brake pad nanoparticles make up air pollution around freeways. Nanoparticles easily stay suspended and disperse, and can be resuspended.

by xyzzyz 6y ago

bamboozled 6y ago

I’ve thought about how bad this must be for years. It’s hard to imagine all of the tyre dust that’s been lost into the environment over the years. Not just from cars, also commercial airliner tyres

dredmorbius 6y ago
Airline tire deposition is almost entirely witin the threshold / toucchdown zone portion of airport runways. The skid marks from sudden wheel spin-up and loading are highly evident: https://thumbs.dreamstime.com/z/burbank-california-usa-april-skid-marks-runway-airport-near-los-angeles-117262723.jpg https://thumbs.dreamstime.com/z/burbank-california-usa-april... https://youtube.com/watch?v=DFOynlRYT54 https://youtube.com/watch?v=DFOynlRYT54 There's effectively no wear during flight

jurip 6y ago

Another thing related to tire pollution is asphalt dust. Road surface gets used up, too, especially in places where studded winter tires are popular, and it's a significant source of airborne particulate matter: https://grapevine.is/news/2020/11/30/winter-tires-have-huge-impact-on-air-pollution/ https://grapevine.is/news/2020/11/30/winter-tires-have-huge-...

lumberingjack 6y ago
My state just banned studied winter tires because it was tearing up the streets too much and it really hasn't snowed and quite a long time as the climate changes
- fingerlocks 6y ago
  Which state is this?
  - dredmorbius 6y ago
    Unsure of OP, but snow tyres are banned in Alabama, Texas, Florida, Maryland (exception five mountain counties), Louisiana, Hawaii, Illinois, Minnesota, Mississippi and Wisconsin, according to thi (undated, though possibly from Sept 2020 by IA WBM: https://web.archive.org/web/*/https://itstillruns.com/states-not-allow-studded-tires-5468627.html https://web.archive.org/web/*/https://itstillruns.com/states...) article: https://itstillruns.com/states-not-allow-studded-tires-5468627.html https://itstillruns.com/states-not-allow-studded-tires-54686...
    - xyzzyz 6y ago
      Snow tires are not banned there, studded tires are.
      - dredmorbius 6y ago
        That's what I'd meant, as the link makes clear.

ajnin 6y ago

That "gaseous pollution" is mostly CO2, a gas responsible for global warming and perhaps the biggest environmental threat we are facing right now. You can't limit yourself to comparing the amount released of both pollutants and not consider the scale of things. CO2 spreads all over the planet and remains in the atmosphere basically forever, until it is taken away, and particulate pollution is local and does not remain in the air for very long. Both should be addressed but they are not interchangeable.

lumberingjack 6y ago

A lot of the surface of the tire gets turned into gas particulate

ouid 6y ago

Particulate pollution does not stay suspended in the air indefinitely. When wind blows in the desert, dust is kicked up and the particulate pollution is temporarily quite high. Then time passes or it rains and everything is clean again. The world is made of particulate that has come to rest.

mint2 6y ago
When it rains those particles run off in to the streams, where they can leach chemicals out, especially as the materials degrade in uv light and oxygen with their massively increased surface area as particles vs being part of a tire. And brake pad nanoparticles make up air pollution around freeways. Nanoparticles easily stay suspended and disperse, and can be resuspended.