A publication of Work On Waste USA, Inc., 82 Judson, Canton, NY 13617 315-379-9200 June 7, 1990
The problems: Operating deficits; not enough trash to burn even before recycling efforts are fully operational; and imported trash paying less in tipping fees than towns in incinerator project. In a May 1, 1990, interview with Waste Not, John Cook, the project manager for the New Hampshire-Vermont Solid Waste Project, said that in 1989 the incinerator project had a deficit of $400,000. The 1989 budget, which included incinerator and landfill operations, and administration was approximately $4 million. The NH-VT project has contracted waste from 28 towns, 13 in NH and 15 in VT with a 20-year contract with Wheelabrator. Waste from outside the NH-VT project has been received at the incinerator since the incinerator opened with Wheelabrator handling the negotiations for the imported waste. According to Mr. Cook the projects 28 towns provides 2/3rds of the waste for the incinerator, with imported waste making up the remaining 1/3 of the waste to the incinerator. When asked if the recycling that is just beginning to take place in the 28 towns will cause even less tonnage to the incinerator thus requiring more imported waste, Mr. Cook replied, I dont think it will get less...the Project will probably admit new towns in the [incinerator] district, while the 28 towns will be producing less, new towns will add more. Mr. Cook said that imported waste, contracted for by Wheelabrator, have a tipping fee of $57.50 a ton, compared to the towns in the incinerator project paying tipping fees of $75.38 per ton. Mr. Cook said that Wheelabrator pays for the ash disposal of the imported trash. According to the Rutland Herald (VT) of 5-30-90: Underdelivery problems continue to plague the local solid waste project and may cause severe budget problems if the trend is not halted, members warned Tuesday. For the first three months of the year, the New Hampshire-Vermont Solid Waste Project fell short of its contractual trash obligation at the Claremont, NH, incinerator. According to Project Manager John Cook, the underdelivery has resulted in lost revenue of about $171,000. The actual effect of that revenue shortfall on the projects finances was argued by representatives at a project meeting Tuesday. According to figures provided by Kimberly Allen, project business manager, the projects deficit for the first four months of the year stands at about $65,000. The point is, it behooves us, very clearly, to go and get more tonnage - tomorrow, said member Joseph Fromberger of Chester. Cook said Wheelabrator Environmental Systems, the owner and operator of the incinerator, has authorized the project to seek trash from non-project towns to make up the difference. Thomas Spater of Chester said the numbers concern him because taken over an entire year, they would result in a substantial deficit and likely higher disposal fees for member towns...Cook said efforts are underway to negotiate for short-term spot tonnage from non-member towns to make up the shortfall, as well as to bring new communities into the project as members. However, so far, no permanent members have been obtained, Cook said.
More problems: Claremonts Wheelabrator incinerator violates carbon monoxide emissions. The state has ordered Wheelabrator Environmental Systems to correct excess carbon monoxide emissions from the companys rubbish incinerator here. The N.H. Air Resources Division issued an administrative order on May 19 for numerous carbon monoxide violations during the first three months of this year...The plants air quality permit...allows each of the incinerators two furnaces to emit 12 pounds of carbon monoxide per hour. According to the administrative order, the first burner exceeded that limit 70 times during the first quarter of the year, while the second burner exceeded the limit 52 times during the same period...No financial penalty was attached to the administrative order...Earlier in March, Wheelabrator agreed to pay an $8,000 fine to the federal government for failing to file environmental reports on time. The reports deal with tests on runoff from the incinerator property on Grisson Road into neighboring streams. Rutland Herald, (VT), 5-31-90.
6-17-87: Lime feed screws not running, believe feeder
off 4-6 hours, excess emissions SO2 or HCL, required to check
lime feeders every two hours instead of one time per shift.
6-23-87: Lime feeder plugged with material.
6-25-87: Bypass three minutes due to high temperature.
6-27-87: Bypass five minutes due to chute plugged and
drop (?)
7-1-87 to 9-30-87 report: O2 Monitor out, failed probe,
failed printed circuit board.
10-1 to 12-31-87 report: SO2 and HCL emission due to
broken lime feeder screw unit #1.
1987, Third Quarter: Problems with O2 analyzer.
December 1987: Air Resources Division has three main areas of concern: 1. Hydrogen chloride scrubbing system - mechanical injection device; 2. Reliability of two thermocouples in each incinerator; at times thermocouples have melted or have been covered with ash. 3. Actual CO emission rate.
12-9-87: Equipment malfunction; lime feed screw had sheared
at drive assembly.
4-13-88: EPA to Air Resources Division--need to repeat
some testing.
10-9-88: #2 boiler baghouse went into bypass due to failure
of baghouse inlet temperature thermocouple.
4-3-89: Excess emission of carbon monoxide.
4-18-89: Oxygen monitor out of service for 6 hours.
4-25-89: By-pass of the baghouse on both boilers, causing
a violation of permit condition for opacity.
4-30-89: Excess emission of carbon monoxide.
5-8-89 & 5-9-89: Oxygen monitor out of service for
48 hours.
6-20-89 & 6-22-89: Excess emission carbon monoxide.
6-27-89: Oxygen monitor out of service for 7 hours.
7-15; 8-12; 8-14; 8-15; 8-17; 8-27; 8-31; & 9-10-89: Excess
emission carbon monoxide.
7-1-89 to 9-30-89 report: Oxygen monitor out of service
for 4 hours. Carbon monoxide monitor out of service for 48 hours.
10-l; 10-3; 10-27; 10-30; 11-3; 11-29; & 12-2-89: Excess
emission of carbon monoxide.
l2-5; l2-15; 12-22; & 12-23-89: Excess emission:
opacity.
Fourth quarter continuous emission monitor summary - 1989:
Opacity monitor #1 out of service 17 hours; Opacity monitor
#2 out of service 33 hours.
1-1-90 to 3-31-90: 25 instances of continuous emission
monitoring system (CEMS) downtime, O2 and carbon monoxide monitors
affected. 34 instances of CEMS downtime, opacity monitor affected.
Source downtime: 79.8 hours for boiler #l and 106.4 hours for
boiler #2.
l-l4-90: Plant power outage, baghouse bypass damper on
Boiler #2 open, opacity average for Boiler #2 exceeds 20% for
total of 6 minutes.
1-14-90: Baghouse by-pass for 3 minutes.
1-30; 1-31; 2-1; 2-2; 2-4; 2-5; 2-6; 2-7; 2-10; 2-11; 2-12;
2-17; 3-3; 3-14; 3-21; & 3-25-90. Excess Carbon Monoxide
- Boiler # l.
1-23; 1-26; 1-30; 1-31; 2-1; 2-4; 2-5; 2-6; 2-7; 2-8; 2-10;
2-12; 2-17; & 2-20-90. Excess Carbon Monoxide - Boiler
# 2.
The above information was obtained from the Claremont incinerator file at the Air Resources Division in Concord, N.H., and prepared by WORKING ON WASTE, RR#3, Box #477, Claremont, NH 03743. (603) 543-0962, (603)-675-5486, or (603)-826-4803