Summary:

The worldwide production of waste tires (so called "end of life tires" - ELT) grows every year. The same situation is in the Czech Republic and in the countries of the European Union, but also in the world. Every year about 3.4 million tonnes of used tyres (part worn + end of life tyres) are generated in Europe, of which
3 million tonnes are either recycled or recovered. This amounts to approximately 300 million units. The composition and energy characteristics of tires are a signif-icant source of material, energy and also raw material. Calorific value tires ranges from approximately 25 to approximately 32 MJ • kg-1. The calorific value is comparable with conventional fossil fuels, which is due to the high proportion of hydrocarbons (over 75%). For these reasons, an alternative tire conventional
fuels.
The aim of the research is focused on the second part of product life cycle - the tire at the end of lifetime. The main possibilities of utilization of used up tires after end of their life are as follows: retreading, recycling (production of granulate), energy and material utilization in a cement factory, pyrolysis (production of pyrolytic products) and formerly used waste storing. Another objective of the work is to describe the situation of waste tires in the Czech Republic in the European Union and the world and focus on the issue of return.