Yellowstone Completes Phase II of Project to Install Advanced Eco-Friendly Pavement in Walkways around Old Faithful Geyser

Michelin Tires Recycled for Novel Paving Material that Helps Protect World's Largest Geyser Ecosystem

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Sep 30, 2016, 10:10 ET

GREENVILLE, S.C., Sept. 30, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Yellowstone National Park has completed the second phase of its initiative to install more eco-friendly walkways in the world's largest concentration of geysers and thermal features. With help from the Michelin Corporate Foundation, Yellowstone National Park recently finished replacing 4,160 square feet of crumbling asphalt paths with walkways made from innovative eco-friendly paving material that is manufactured in part from recycled tires. This new material will help reduce run-off and erosion in the eco-sensitive Yellowstone Geyser Basin, which features the iconic Old Faithful geyser and attracts millions of visitors a year.

Sustainable pathway around Yellowstone's Old Faithful made from recycled Michelin tires

Michelin logo.

The initiative replaces aging asphalt with KBI Flexi^®-Pave. This product provides a porous, durable and flexible surface that allows the water from rain and snow to percolate through the walkway the way it would have done before the walkways were installed, and in turn creating more natural water patterns that eventually replenish the geyser basin. Unlike asphalt, this paving material does not create significant storm-water runoff or leach pollutants into the soil. It also does not break apart, which prevents material from ending up in geysers and hot springs.

This second phase of the project used a total of 1,536 end-of-life tires to help create thousands of square feet of paths. Most of these tires were originally donated several years ago by Michelin for use on Yellowstone's more than 800 fleet vehicles and commercial equipment. Michelin has been a Yellowstone Park Foundation corporate partner since 2008.

"The Yellowstone Walkways Project aligns with Michelin's commitment to being a global leader in sustainable mobility," said Leesa Owens, director of community relations for Michelin North America. "Our employees have been involved with this project from the start, working directly to help create environmentally friendly walkways out of Michelin tires that had already provided Yellowstone with years of cost-effective and fuel-efficient operations."

Flexi-Pave is made of rubber granules and stone held together by a polymer binding agent that is inert when cured. Its open-pore design enables fast evacuation of up to 4,000 cubic inches of water per hour. Beyond Yellowstone, this innovative product has a broad range of applications. The thousands of rubber granules making up its surface make it non-slip and it is an ADA-compliant surface accessible to wheelchairs and walkers. The integrity of the materials are not affected by freeze-thaw conditions which is why it works well in cold and snowy parts of the Northeastern and Midwestern United States.

"Helping to create a next-generation trail system in Yellowstone National Park is very gratifying," said Kevin Bagnall, CEO and founder of KBI. "Flexi-Pave not only provides an environmentally friendly solution for the Old Faithful area, it prevents thousands of old tires from ending up in a landfill or being burned for fuel."

The project was made possible through a partnership between Yellowstone National Park, park concessioners, the Yellowstone Park Foundation, KBI Industries and the Michelin Corporate Foundation.

"Yellowstone is the world's first national park with nearly 150 years of balancing the protection of natural wonders and sharing them with visitors," said Lynn Chan, a landscape architect for the National Park Service and lead on sustainability at Yellowstone National Park. "It is important to us to rehabilitate the park's walkways with materials that can help protect this sensitive environment yet still allow visitors to see and appreciate it."

"This project represents the model for collaboration between public and private organizations. We hope that this eco-friendly park walkway will inspire other similar projects that help preserve natural systems," said Jeff Augustin, vice president of external partnerships at Yellowstone Park Foundation.

About Michelin North America
Dedicated to the improvement of sustainable mobility, Michelin designs, manufactures and sells tires for every type of vehicle, including airplanes, automobiles, bicycles, earthmovers, farm equipment, heavy-duty trucks and motorcycles. The company also publishes travel guides, hotel and restaurant guides, maps and road atlases. Headquartered in Greenville, S.C., Michelin North America www.michelinman.com employs more than 22,750 and operates 20 major manufacturing plants.

About the Yellowstone Park Foundation
The Yellowstone Park Foundation (YPF) has served as Yellowstone National Park's official fundraising partner since 1996. Its mission is to fund projects and programs that protect, preserve, and enhance the natural and cultural resources, and the visitor experience of the Park. YPF has raised more than $100 million, and funded more than 325 important projects and initiatives since 1996 that include wildlife research, cutthroat trout restoration, trail maintenance, and youth education. For more information, please go to www.ypf.org.

Video - http://origin-qps.onstreammedia.com/origin/multivu_archive/PRNA/ENR/MichelinPathwayProjectHD.mp4

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20040818/MICHELIN

SOURCE Michelin