The Oil Daily, Jan 7, 1992 n9900 p4(1) 
                Highway act mandates use of rubber in asphalt. (new law requires 
                rubberized highway asphalt) Maria DePaul. 
            Full Text: COPYRIGHT The Oil Daily 1992 
            A new use has been found for scrap tires -- they are shredded and 
            mixed into the asphalt that lines the nation's roadways. 
            Rubberized asphalt accounts for less than 1 percent of scrap tires, 
            but use is rising. Soon all states that receive federal highway 
            funds will be required to use this mix. 
            The addition of rubber to asphalt can double its lifetime, EPA says, 
            but can cost twice as much as ordinary asphalt initially. 
            Until the highway act was signed in December, rubberized asphalt was 
            classified by the Federal Highway Administration as an 
            "experimental" project. The new law sets minimum use requirements 
            which states must meet by 1994 to continue to receive highway 
            funding. 
            The highway act requires any state which receives federal funds to 
            use at least 5 percent crumb rubber asphalt (CRA) in all of its hot 
            mix asphalt by 1994. This requirement rises 5 percent per year to 20 
            percent in 1997. 
            HMA is a blend of 4 to 6 percent liquid asphalt, sand and aggregate 
            (crushed stone). 
            To receive federal funds, states must certify that they have met the 
            minimum requirements. If a requirement is not met in a given year, 
            that percent of federal funding will be withheld. The minimum use 
            requirements will be confirmed pending results of research required 
            by the new law. 
            The act separates this research into three categories. EPA will 
            study what effects use of crumb rubber asphalt has on the 
            environment and on human health. The Federal Highway Administration 
            will test the performance of crumb rubber asphalt under different 
            traffic and weather conditions. Together, they will check whether 
            the asphalt can perform to the standards of hot mix asphalt. 
            No funding has been set aside for these studies, so the money will 
            have to come from the agencies' budgets. 
            They have 18 months to complete their studies and report to 
            Congress. A report by the National Asphalt Pavement Association says 
            "the established timetable is unrealistic." 
            NAPA says the minimum use requirements may be waived if research 
            brings negative results. Also, the requirements may be applied on a 
            "state-by-state" basis. "If a state has more economical uses for its 
            scrap tires, the use of CRA may not be mandated in that state, 
            "reads a report by the association. 
            The report adds that there is no provision to include crumb rubber 
            asphalt from non-federal aid projects as part of the percentages. 
            The group is planning to lobby for this interpretation. 
            Of the more than 242 million tires scrapped in the U.S. annually, 
            less than 7 percent of the total is recycled, EPA says. In addition, 
            new tires generally contain less than 2 percent recycled rubber. 
            EPA concludes that using crumb rubber "as additives for asphalt 
            pavements and combustion is the greatest potential use for scrap 
            tires and is based on proven technologies." 
            However, the NAPA report states that burning used tires for energy 
            may be a more efficient and economical disposal method, if 
            technology is "adopted on a widespread basis." 
             
             Article A11769965