Egypt village turns a profit on used tyres

Residents have eked out a living by recycling old tyres into new rubber-based products

Last updated: January 20, 2020 | 17:48

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Residents of the Egyptian village of Mit Al Harun have for decades eked out a living by recycling old tyres into baskets, landscaping materials and alternative fuels.

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From early morning, workers covered in soot and dust can be seen sharpening their knives to cut huge tyres stockpiled on the village's roadsides.

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"The entire village works on recycling damaged tyres," said 35-year-old Abdelwahab Mohamed outside of his workshop.

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"We inherited it from our fathers and grandfathers."

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The small Nile Delta village, some 70 kilometres north of Cairo, has gained a reputation as Egypt's top rubber recycling hub.

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Dealers collect used tyres from across the country, delivering them to Mit al-Harun in huge trucks.

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Mohamed said prices per tyre go up to around 70 Egyptian pounds (four dollars).

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"We cut the tyres here and pull out material including wire rings, which are collected by steel and iron factories to be recycled," he said.

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"Tyre rubber is often chopped into small pieces to be used by cement factories as an energy source" - an alternative to low-grade mazut fuel oil.

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Other parts are recycled into mulch for playgrounds, he added.

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Mohamed said his work has grown unstable over the years, especially since the 2011 uprising that unseated longtime dictator Hosni Mubara and triggered years of political and economic turmoil.

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"There are days with plenty of work and others with little to none," he said.

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Azab's workshop, with a handful of workers, processes up to 10 tyres per day, producing between 80-120 baskets.

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Azab's brother, Haitham, said the job was "exhausting".

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"It requires physical strength to carry around the heavy tyres," he said.