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03/29/2023 11:56 AMFor more than two years, mysterious chunks of rubber have been washing up on the part of Meigs Point known as Slip Shell Beach. Most of the debris appears to be from rubber tires, with a smaller amount coming from old shoes. The debris is believed to be washing ashore from a decades-old once legal dumping site that is marked on some marine charts from the 1970s.
However, a definitive answer on the location of the exact dumping site and the cause of the debris has yet to be identified, and the mysterious rubber continues contaminating this stretch of beach. The problem brings to light a larger issue of the toxicity of used rubber tires and recent efforts to promote legislation that would address the problem of how to properly dispose of the hundreds of millions of used tires created every year in the U.S.
Fran Brady, who first brought the Meigs Point problem to the attention of Madison officials and who has diligently tried to solve the mystery for several years, said he is hopeful that the source will eventually be located.
Brady said his current efforts focus on educating lawmakers and residents about the chunk mystery and the pressing greater matter of what to do with Connecticut’s used tires. Brady, who also had a career in the chemical manufacturing industry, said tires contain numerous chemicals, several of which are specifically formulated to keep the product from breaking down and decomposing, making them a long-term pollutant when not properly disposed of.
According to Brady, a solution that requires an Extended Producer Responsibility classification (EPR) seems to be the best tactic to address and solve the issue of how to dispose of tires on a permanent basis. An EPR shifts the burden to manufacturers in coordinating the final disposal of the products they make.
“There’s two major ingredients that we have to be concerned about, zinc oxide, that is a fuller to prevent degradation, and an antiozonant called PPD, which keeps the product from crumbling. These chemicals could pose a toxic threat to coastal industries such as fishing, oyster, and other shellfish farming,” Brady said.
Brady added that an EPR might not be a complete solution, but it is the best shot at controlling the problem and keeping as many tires as possible out of the environment.
“(T)hese voluntary industry efforts are few and too small to address the full scale of the problem. The rubber pollution we are witnessing daily at Hammonasset is a graphic example of what could happen elsewhere if the disposal of used tires is not managed properly.” Brady said.
Brady is among a growing group of activists that are urging Connecticut legislators to adopt an EPR program not just to protect the environment but to reduce the fiscal impact on municipalities and their residents.
According to Brady, the issue of used tires has been a topic of discussion on both of the entities he serves on, The CT Recyclers Association and as a Madison representative on the joint Guilford-Madison Transfer station (Madison’s entity is called the Solid Waste Disposal Committee). Both organizations have made finding a permanent solution a priority.
“We support an EPR as well. We are trying at a local and state level to address this issue and make folks aware of the situation. They are hoping private industry will step up and take care of this, but sometimes you have to impose rules to make sure it’s done right. The important thing about EPR is that these costs need to be shifted away from the consumers or towns and back to the manufacturers,” said Brady. “That’s their responsibility. That is really the key to an EPR. They (the manufacturers) should be helping with this. They need to help us create a solution; we need and incentives to do that.”
Meanwhile, Brady is still seeking help to locate the source of the rubber at Meigs Point.
“These pieces are still washing ashore, and we would really like to find an answer,” Brady said. “It’s been more than two and a half years that I’ve been finding these pieces out there, and it doesn’t seem to be slowing. It would be great to settle this and find out just what is the cause.”
Anyone interested in this assisting in this project, especially anyone with diving experience, can contact Fran Brady via email at fxbrady4@gmail.com