Escambia County Tire Amnesty Day Collects 1,360 Tires for Disposal

Escambia County recently collected 1,360 waste tires totaling 22 tons to be disposed of during Escambia County Tire Amnesty Day, helping to rid the community of old tires that may be used as mosquito breeding sites. 

About 217 residents participated in Escambia County Tire Amnesty Day, which took place Saturday, March 24 at the Escambia County Public Safety Building. The drop-off event provided county residents an opportunity to dispose of up to eight tires per person free of charge. The Escambia County Mosquito Control Division also treated the tires with larvicide and distributed educational handouts about mosquito prevention during the event.  

Tire Amnesty Day is sponsored by the Escambia County Waste Services Department in partnership with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, through DEP's Waste Tire Amnesty Grant Program. The event aims to help reduce mosquito-borne illness through non-chemical means, by disposing of old tires that may be used as mosquito breeding sites. Mosquito species that can transmit harmful infections such as West Nile virus breed in artificial container breeding sites, with old tires being a favorite location. Waste tires in large quantities can also pose a fire hazard.

For more information about this event or proper disposal of waste, please contact the Escambia County Waste Services Department at 850-937-2160 or [email protected].