by Trish Smith
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According to Asphalt Rubber Technology Service, an organization whose mission is to utilize scrap tires for engineering applications, about 280 million scrap tires are produced in the U.S. each year. A large portion of these tires are taking up space in our landfills, or they're sitting on the side of the road, so they're definitely not having a positive impact on our planet.

Two major problems associated with rubber tire waste are:

1. Standing water in the tires is the perfect breeding ground for disease-carrying mosquitoes.
3. If a tire catches on fire it will burn for months, emitting toxic pollutants into the air.

We definitely don't want any more mosquitoes around, and we don't need any more greenhouse gasses emitted into the air, so wouldn't we like for someone to create a rubber tire made from recyclable, eco friendly material? Of course we would, and lucky for us our friends at Yokohama just did!

The Super E-spec

Made from citrus orange oil and other natural materials, the Super E-spec rubber passenger tire is the eco alternative to standard petroleum-based tires. Yokohama calls the material "Super Nano-Powered Rubber Compound," and it's much lighter than regular rubber. This orange rubber compound not only reduces rolling resistance, which saves the grip on your tires, but it also helps the tires retain air longer.

Some other cool features of these tires are grooves that enable traction in the rain and tread blocks that reduce noise.

Overall, these tires cost less and are more eco friendly than your average rubber tire, so we should support Yokohama in this green endeavor. If the tires prove to be as great as they sound, maybe all car manufacturers will come up with a similar recycling idea.

For added credibility, check out how the Super E-spec rubber tire won the Popular Mechanics Editor's Choice Award in 2008.

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