A Steveston playground will be surfaced with almost 3,000 recycled tires.
Steveston Community Park is one of eight B.C. communities to receive a grant from Tire Stewardship BC -- an environmental not-for-profit that collects and recycles scrap tires in the province -- for playground projects using B.C. recycled tires.
A total of 2,925 recycled tires will be used for the Steveston Park Playground Renewal project.
This is the largest number of scrap tires being used out of all the revamp projects through the not-for-profit's grant program.
Pour-in-place rubber will be used in the playground for safety surfacing, play and thematic design features (salmon mounds, colour gradients), stairs in the play area and other safety surfacing such as wood fibre and play sand.
The project's opening date is expected to be June 2025, according to Tire Stewardship BC in an email to the Richmond News.
Tire Stewardship BC said they will reuse 11,741 scrap tires for playgrounds in Merritt, North Vancouver, Vernon, Burnaby, Port Moody and Kamloops this year.
“Pour-in-place rubber surfacing is a desirable surface material for enhancing playgrounds,” said Rosemary Sutton, executive director of Tire Stewardship BC.
“Rubber surfacing increases the accessibility of playgrounds and makes them more inclusive for people of all ages and all abilities."
Sutton added pea gravel or other surfaces can be challenging for children in a wheelchair to navigate in.
"Rubber surfacing ensures children and adults of all abilities can participate, and everyone in the community benefits."
Tire Stewardship B.C. has given out more than $6 million in community grants and funded more than 340 projects.
Since the scrap tire recycling program was first established in B.C. in 1991, more than 115 million tires have been recycled in the province.
Got an opinion on this story or any others in Richmond? Send us a letter or email your thoughts or story tips to [email protected]. To stay updated on Richmond news, sign up for our daily headline newsletter.
