(AFP) Tyre makers today urged the government to ban the import of second-hand tyres, adding that the country is being used as a dumping ground for used tyres from Japan and South Korea.

"Of late there has been indiscriminate importation of used tyres," the Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers said in a joint statement with the Malaysian Automotive Tyre Manufacturers Industry Group.

They said imported second-hand tyres posed a serious threat to the safety of road users since some of them were not road worthy.

Furthermore, "snow tyres" unsuitable for tropical Malaysia had been imported from Europe, North America and Japan and sold to users at low prices, it said.

The manufacturers said investigations had revealed that Japan and South Korea exported used tyres to Malaysia as a way of disposing of them.

"Malaysia is used as a dumping ground for other countries' environmental problems.

"We advocate a total ban on the importation of used tyres by the authorities," they said.