Brussels, 6 April 2017 – E -  The Board of Directors of the European Tyre and Rubber Manufacturers’ Association met today for the first of its two annual meetings.

Amongst the several topics discussed in order to set the medium to long term priorities for the activities of the Association, particular attention was paid to the EU environmental agenda related to tyres and rubber products. This covers several aspects of the industry’s operation: from product inception to production, from the use phase to end of life.

In this context, the decarbonisation of transport remains high on the agenda of ETRMA. The European tyre industry has taken a proactive approach and is engaged in reducing CO2 emissions through new and advanced tyre technologies whilst promoting road safety and other regulatory measures, such as the tyre label. The Board confirms its support to the efforts of the European Commission to reduce Heavy Duty Vehicle CO₂ emissions. The Board also confirms the continued efforts of the European tyre industry to improve the tyre rolling resistance coefficient by 1% on average per annum, which would result, by 2030, in a further reduction of 8.7 million tons of CO₂, corresponding to removing emission equivalent of 81,000 40 ton-trucks every year from the European roads^[1].

Another area in which the industry is working proactively is the investigation of the fate and possible effects of tyre and road-wear particles generated during tyre use. The Board welcomed the launch of a study to further expand and deepen the knowledge on such particles in the environment. This activity builds on a wider 10-year-long work carried out by the Tire Industry Project^[2], under the auspices of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD).

“There are very different figures circulating on the impact of these particles on the environment” said the President of ETRMA, Mr Christian Kötz, “for this reason, we decided to develop a complementary research project based on a novel approach which takes into consideration data already collected on the size and density of these particles and further looks at whether and how these are transferred to the aquatic environment”. The study is supported by an independent scientific advisory board – which has validated its approach and protocol – and should be completed before the end of 2017. Its results will also feed into the European Commission’s own investigation on micro-plastics^[3].

“The Board meeting of today confirms the commitment of the tyre and rubber industry to sustainability, not just through its focus on environmental issues – some of which are mentioned above, but also looking at other important aspects such as the future of road transport, REACH refit, toxic-free secondary raw materials and drinking water legislation, just to mention a few”, concluded Mrs Cinaralp, Secretary General of ETRMA.

^[1] Based on ETRMA’s own calculations, assuming avg. fuel consumption of 34 l/100 km and an avg. yearly mileage of 120,000 km

² Established in January 2006, the goal of the Tire Industry Project (TIP), working under the umbrella of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), is to anticipate, study and determine potential environmental and health issues relating to the life cycle impacts of tires that could impact the tire industry globally and to communicate results to the appropriate stakeholders

³ Investigating options for reducing releases in the aquatic environment of micro-plastics emitted by (but not intentionally added in) products.

For further information, please contact Marta Conti, Communication Manager

About ETRMA

The industry employs directly more than 350 000 people with a turnover of €73B in 2015, which constitutes about half a point of the EU turnover. ETRMA’s membership include the following tyre manufacturers: APOLLO VREDESTEIN, BRIDGESTONE EUROPE, BRISA, COOPER TIRES, CONTINENTAL, GOODYEAR DUNLOP TIRES EUROPE, HANKOOK, MARANGONI, MICHELIN, NOKIAN TYRES, PIRELLI and TRELLEBORG WHEEL SYSTEMS. Associations in the following countries are also members of ETRMA: Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain and the UK.