Sustainable management of end-of-life vehicle tires in Nepal: Current practices, opportunities, and challenges

The rapid growth in the number of vehicles in Nepal, driven by economic development, urbanization, and increased vehicle adoption, has led to an increase in End-of-Life Tires (ELTs). This is a PRISMA approach review and reports the opportunities, challenges, and strategic pathways for Nepalese sustainable ELT management. The European Union's ELT management was found to be effective through robust regulations, advanced recycling, and efficient collection. Whereas Nepal faces institutional, infrastructural, and technological constraints amid rapidly growing tire waste. Current practices remain limited to retreading and informal reuse. Lessons from India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh show that material recycling, crumb rubber production, and regulated pyrolysis can enhance resource recovery in developing contexts. However, Nepal’s progress is hindered by fragmented waste streams, limited investment, weak regulatory standards, inadequate certification, and uncertain market demand. ELTs represent valuable secondary resources for circular economy development. Immediate priorities include generating baseline data, formalizing collection, strengthening retreading, and initiating pilot-scale recycling with policy support. A phased, context-sensitive pathway starting with collection and monitoring, advancing to recycling technologies and pyrolysis, and concluding in a dedicated national framework and future research priorities is recommended. Coordinated policy, industrial participation, and green enterprise initiatives can transform Nepal’s ELT from environmental liability into a sustainable resource stream.