Starting Thursday, tires will be the most wanted item in Clark County.

For three days, the Kentucky Division of Waste Management and Clark County Solid Waste will accept tires of almost any size and use for free disposal.

Clark County Solid Waste Coordinator Gary Epperson said the county hosts smaller events, but the state events happen about every three years.

“This is the big one,” he said. “It’s a state-wide tire round up. It’s unlimited. If you have a million tires, bring them.”

The event will be from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday at the state highway department, 1055 Early Drive, in Winchester. It is open to Clark County residents, but no tire retailers, scrap or salvage yards or recycling facilities can participate.

Unlike smaller events, Epperson said this one will accept more tires including regular tires either mounted or not, tractor tires and truck tires.

Tires from off-road construction equipment, solid tires, foam- or calcium-filled tires and tires with a bead larger than 1-3/4 inches will not be accepted, he said.

This will be the fifth state tire collection event, Epperson said, in Clark County. The first year collected about 38,000 tires. With each event, the number has dropped; the last state tire collected netted about 8,000, he said. The county’s annual collection efforts usually dispose of about 2,000 tires, he said.

“We’ve reduced the number of tires we’re collecting locally,” Epperson said. “Those yearly roundups have helped bring that down.”

Properly disposing of old tires also eliminates a public health hazard.

“Tires are a prime breeding ground for mosquitoes,” he said. “It’s really important not to have tires lying around.”