A publication of Work On Waste USA, Inc., 82 Judson, Canton, NY 13617 315-379-9200 Dec. 1993 - Jan. 1994
The 12th of our 24-part series continues our review of waste-to-energy MSW incinerators, including references to Waste Not issues. Vendor/Operator from GAA’s 1993 edition. Type: M=Mass Burn; R=RDF. Tons-Per-Day is incinerator design capacity. APC = Air Pollution Controls: 1-ESP. 2-Baghouse. 3-Dry Scrubber. 4-NOx Control. 5-Wet Scrubber.
INCINERATOR V = VENDOR Year TONS-PER-DAY
LOCATION O = OPERATOR Type APC On-Line 1988 1991 1993
MN Duluth53 V: N.A.; O: Sanitary District R 5 1981 400 400 400
Fergus Falls54 V: John Zink; O: City M 5 1988 94 94 94
Minneapolis55 V/O: OGDEN MARTIN M 2,3 1990 - 1200 1200
Perham56 V: Synergy/Quadrant O: Quadrant M 1 1986 116 116 116
Polk County V: John Zink: O: County M 1 1988 80 80 103
Red Wing57 V: CONSUMAT. O:City M 1 1982 72 72 72
Rochester58 V: Riley Stoker/Takuma M 1 1987 200 200 200
O: Olmstead County
Savage V: Morse Bougler/Brule M 1 1982 57 57 57
O: Richards Asphalt Co.
MO - Fort Leonard V: Environmental Control M None 1982 75 75 -
Wood59 O: Harbert International
MS - Pascagoula60 V: Sigoure Freres. O: CFB M 1 1985 150 150 150
53. Duluth, Minnesota. See Dr. Gary Glass’s article, New sources of mercury contamination in the Great Lakes, published in the International Joint Commission’s newsletter Focus, Nov-Dec 1988. The sewage sludge incinerator cited in the article refers to the Duluth fluidized-bed incinerator which burns RDF and sewage sludge. This article was significant in identifying incinerators as a major source of mercury entering the Great Lakes. Though the incinerator burns twice as much sewage sludge than municipal waste, municipal waste accounted “for at least half of the mercury inputs to the plant.” Commissioner Charles Williams of the Minnesota Pollution Control Authority was a former manager of this incinerator. For more information contact Leslie Davis, Earth Protector, 1138 Plymouth Building, Minneapolis, MN 55402. Tel: 612-375-02102. See also WN # 33.
54. Fergus Falls, Minnesota. “State of Minnesota provided 95% of project financing (grants & low interest loans).” Ref GAA 1993*, p 376. Steam sold to state-run hospital. According to Leslie Davis they have had problems with emissions, and they are taking in some medical waste. Commissioner Williams of the Minnesota Pollution Control Authority cut a deal to reduce a several hundred thousand dollar fine because of emission violations. For more information contact Leslie Davis, Earth Protector, 1138 Plymouth Building, Minneapolis, MN 55402. Tel: 612-375-0202.
55. Minneapolis, Minnesota. The dramatic end of flow control in Minnesota has this incinerator searching for more waste. The tipping fee has been reduced from $95 a ton to $60. The $35 that was cut was earmarked to pay for 80% of the county’s recycling programs. To secure a recycling fund for 1995, the County has to find $6.7 million. According to Leslie Davis, “a controlled panic is going on right now.” Haulers are breathing easy with the reduced tip fee, but the county wants them to add a 9% tax for residents and a 14 1/2% tax for commercial pick-up, and turn that money into the county. USPCI’s Municipal Services is railroading ash to North Dakota while WMX is trucking ash to Gallatin & Joliet, Illinois, at between $59 to $63 a ton. For more information contact Leslie Davis at 612-375-0202. See also WN#s 29,52,95,96,136,153.
56. Perham, Minnesota. Located next to a wheat field, and close to other dairy and grain farms, in a county with 1,400 lakes. Steam is sold to a Land o’Lakes cheese plant and to a Heinz Pet Food plant. Also, a tofu plant is expected to locate near the incinerator. Up to 1991, the incinerator burned waste oil and medical waste. In a 10-month period they burned one million gallons of waste oil. Those practices stopped after (1) citizens videoed thick black smoke bellowing out the stacks and the state regulators were able to recognize violations; (2) a fetus was found lying at the base of a conveyor belt. Soon after, a loose agreement between the incinerator operator and the city & county was struck: the city agreed to supply the incinerator with below cost gas in return for an agreement not to burn medical waste. Joann Adamczyk noted that the citizens received a lot of help from a member of the Minnesota Pollution Control Authority (MPCA) who, at that time, worked in the air quality division. When resolutions on the deplorable practices at the incinerator were entered into the MPCA contact person was transferred to another department. The citizens say they are not able to get the public information they are allowed to get. They believe their former MPCA contact was transferred because “he was too effective working for the people.” The incinerator receives waste from 9 counties. Quadrant, the incinerator owner and operator, is a subsidiary of Otter Tail Power Company. For more information contact Joann Adamczyk , 555 2nd Street, S.E., Perham, MN 56573. Tel: 218-346-3484. See also WN # 10.
57. Red Wing, Minnesota. The incinerator designer was HDR Engineering. “...A study of dioxins in the stack of the incinerator was a requirement of a stipulation agreement between the city and the MPCA in February 1988. Because of concerns that dioxin compounds might form within the stack, the agency required testing for dioxins in the air emissions before they entered the electrostatic precipitator and as they left the system. In the three tests, conducted in June, the average level of dioxins in the emissions entering the device was 2.2 nanograms (ng) per dry standard cubic meter (dscm). The average leaving the device was 23.8ng/dsm...A stipulation agreement with the MPCA in January 1985 required the city to add the electrostatic precipitator to trap the particulates. In September 1986, air emissions from the Red Wing incinerator were tested as a part of a municipal solid waste incineration study...At that time it was learned that relative high levels of dioxins were being releases (30 ng/dsm)...” February 24, 1989, press release from the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA), Dioxins may form within the electrostatic precipitator. For more information contact Leslie Davis, Earth Protector, at 612-375-0202. See WN# 45.
58. Rochester, Minnesota. HDR performed the feasibility study for the plant. According to GAA 1993*: “Flow control being challenged. Case is now in Federal A