Some Jerk Dumped Hundreds of Tires in the Woods of the U.P.

No one likes a litterer. And in Michigan, with our abundance of amazing outdoor spaces to explore, littering is even more egregious.

That's why I got so mad when I saw that some jerk had dumped over 150 tires near an ATV trail in the U.P.

Get our free mobile app

How to Properly Dispose of Tires in Michigan

I get it, disposing of tires can be a pain. You can't just bring them to a landfill or put them out with your trash. It's actually illegal to do either of those things.

However, for a small fee, you can bring your old tires to a ton of different places across the state that will properly dispose of them for you.

That's not what happened recently in the U.P.

Hundreds of Tires Illegally Dumped in the Upper Peninsula

I first learned of this on June 4, when the Michigan Department of Natural Resources shared a post from a local company about tires that had been left alongside an ATV trail in the U.P.

The tires were found in Kinross, and shortly after they learned about the incident, a local tire company stepped up and said that they would be helping to take care of their disposal. (Shout out to you, UPTire!)

Upper Peninsula Tire Company Cleans Up Hundreds Of Tires Along ATV Trail

And they weren't just saying that they were going to do something, they actually did. While initially it was thought that there were only around 150 tires dumped there, the UP Tire crew ended up pulling out 260 tires in total.

READ MORE: If You Like Pictured Rocks, You'll Love These Other U.P. Spots

And they say that they couldn't have done it alone. In a Facebook post, UP Tire thanked a lot of different people and businesses in the community:

grateful to Justin Sav of Sav’s Garage, who showed up with his own truck and trailer, ready to lend a hand. That’s the kind of neighborly support that makes small communities strong.

A big thanks as well to the Michigan DNR officers and Kinross Township volunteers who came out to help. Many hands truly made light work — and now Mother Nature can begin reclaiming the space where that mountain of tires once sat.

They also gave thanks to an anonymous donor, as well as a local restaurant, Well Diggers Watering Hole & Feed Lot Restaurant, which fed their crew after the clean-up.