Who would have thought that tires could become willow, oak or arbutus leaves?
Innovations are advancing, and a partnership between Michelin and Murarte has brought Green Gardens to life. The initiative transforms end-of-life tires into vertical gardens capable of decontaminating the air and beautifying the urban environment. They flourish without the need for water, just light, wind and a little science to breathe for us.
Michelin and Murarte have joined forces to create a sustainability laboratory that has already begun its pilot phase in Spanish airports. With the support of SIGNUS Ecovalor and the production of Tecnoseñal, each square meter of these gardens reuses 10 tires, providing a positive environmental impact: an urban project of 5,000 m² could recycle more than 350 tons of rubber and purify the air as much as 25% of the Retiro Park in Madrid.
Vertical garden installed at Ilunion’s headquarters in Madrid. Editorial credit: Ilunion.
With a focus on sustainability and the circular economy, the plan foresees its expansion to cities, building facades, tunnel entrances and traffic circles. In this way, where constant polluting waste used to accumulate, a garden will now grow to mitigate the damage.
The process is both artisanal and technological. After removing the metal and textile components from the tire, the remaining rubber is cleaned, stretched and cut with laser-precision water jets. The leaves of the artificial trees are then painted in ovens in the color range chosen by the interior designers. A photocatalytic liquid nano-solution is applied to the leaves. It is transparent and is composed of a chemical element that, when activated by light, wind and humidity, transforms pollutants such as nitrogen dioxide (NOx) into water vapor and salt. In addition, it does not require elaborate maintenance, and its maximum effectiveness lasts for five years.
According to studies supported by the University of Prague, the Cartif Foundation and laboratories such as Fraunhofer, these vertical gardens can reduce between 21% and 28% of NOx in the air. Three square meters of Green Gardens can neutralize the pollution of a car after driving 16,000 km. Facilities such as the Ilunion headquarters next to the M-30 in Madrid or the Areandina Foundation in Bogota have already opted for this sustainable green.
Tire remnants are left as natural leaf replicas. Editorial credit: Michelin Spain.
Green Gardens demonstrates that the future of cities lies in the reinvention of waste. Turning disused tires into urban lungs reminds us that sustainability is not an aesthetic option for beautification. It is an urgent commitment that human beings must take on in order to obtain clean air and green urban life. As well as maintaining our only planet that has kept us alive for centuries.
