Is Rubber Mulch a Safe Option For Backyard Landscaping?
By June Fletcher From The Wall Street Journal Online RealEstateJournal.com Question: I am considering using rubber mulch in my landscape. I am concerned about its toxicity, however. Will it kill plants or hurt people? Is one kind of rubber mulch safer than others? Answer: You mean, you’re not just running copies of The Wall Street Journal through the shredder and using them as mulch? They’re cheap, biodegradable and, my colleagues tell me, printed with nontoxic ink. Oh, wait. You’re asking this question online. From at least one environmental standpoint, you’ve got to love rubber mulch — no trees die in its creation. Made from some of the more than 290 million tires discarded each year, the shredded stuff saves landfill space, too. One manufacturer says that 80 scrapped tires are used to create one cubic yard of shredded mulch. Though it hardly looks real up close — indeed, many manufacturers play up its fauxness by dying it bright red, teal or other bold colors — and it costs more
