Palm Beach County WTE Expansion Model

Author(s):  
Thomas M. Henderson ◽  
Leah K. Richter

Palm Beach County (Florida) Solid Waste Authority built an integrated solid waste management system in the 1980s and 1990s around an 1,800 tpd Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF) Waste-to-Energy (WTE) facility. The system included a network of five regional transfer stations, Subtitle D sanitary landfill, recovered materials processing facility, composting facility, metals processing facility and household hazardous waste collection program. The WTE, which became operational in 1989, was built with two 900 tpd RDF combustion units. Space was provided for the addition of a third combustion unit, a second turbine-generator and an extra flue was installed in the facility’s stack. By 2004, the WTE was fifteen years old. It had been running at over 125% availability and well above its nominal capacity for almost a decade. Landfill capacity was being consumed at a rate which would see it filled in less than 20 years. The County had been hit with repeated hurricanes in recent years and the County’s population was continuing to grow making landfill capacity projections far from certain. The Authority began an assessment of its long term capacity options which included renovation of its existing WTE facility, expansion of that facility, development of a new WTE facility, development of a new Subtitle D Landfill and several out-of-county options. This paper will focus on the results of this assessment with emphasis on the current efforts to develop a new Mass Burn WTE facility with a capacity of 3,000 tpd and a commercial operations date of 2015. It will be the largest new WTE built in North America in more than 20 years. The choice of Mass Burn technology, facility and combustion module sizing, air pollution control technology, facility site selection, environmental permitting, public outreach program, project financing and procurement and contracting approach will be discussed.

Author(s):  
Raymond H. Schauer ◽  
Joseph Krupa

Created in 1978, the Solid Waste Authority of Palm Beach County (Authority) has developed an “award winning” solid waste management system that includes franchised solid waste collections and the following facilities to service the residents and businesses in Palm Beach County, Florida: • North County Resource Recovery Facility (NCRRF); • Residential and Commercial Recovered Materials Processing Facility; • Five Transfer Stations; • Class I Landfill; • Class III Landfill; • Biosolids Pelletization Facility; • Ferrous Processing Facility; • Woody Waste Recycling Facility; • Composting Facility; and • Household Hazardous Waste Facility. The Authority has proactively planned and implemented its current integrated solid waste management program to ensure disposal capacity through 2021. However, like many communities, the Authority anticipates continued population growth and associated new development patterns that will significantly increase demands on its solid waste system, requiring it to reevaluate and update its planning to accommodate future growth. The NCRRF, the Authority’s refuse derived fuel waste-to-energy facility, has performed very well since its start up in 1989 processing over 13 million tons of MSW, saving valuable landfill space and efficiently producing clean, renewable energy. As the NCRRF approached the end of its first 20 year operating term, it became necessary to complete a comprehensive refurbishment to ensure its continued reliable service for a second 20 year term and beyond providing for continued disposal capacity and energy production for the Authority’s customers. The Authority renegotiated and extended its operating agreement with the Palm Beach Resource Recovery Corporation (PBRRC), a Babcock & Wilcox Company, for an additional 20-year term. The Authority selected BE&K Construction Company (BE&K) and entered into an Engineering, Procurement, and Construction contract (EPC Contract) to perform the refurbishment. The Authority, with assistance from its Consulting Engineer, Malcolm Pirnie, Inc., developed the minimum technical requirements and negotiated the EPC Contract with BE&K. The design and procurement efforts were completed in early 2009 and on-site construction refurbishment activities commenced in November 2009. The refurbishment has a total estimated cost of $205 million. The refurbishment work is sequenced with the intent that one boiler train will remain operational to reduce the impact to the Authority’s landfill and maximize electrical production and revenues during the refurbishment period. This presentation will focus on the improvements to operations as a result of the refurbishment and its positive effects on the Authority’s integrated solid waste management system.


Author(s):  
Willard Wilson

In the early 1980’s Polk County and four other partner counties in rural Northwest Minnesota made the decision to incorporate a waste to energy (WTE) plant into their solid waste management program. This decision was made to comply with the Minnesota hierarchy for solid waste management, to extend the life of the Polk County landfill, and to recover valuable energy from the waste. The plant was constructed in 1987 and began burning MSW in 1988. The processing technology consisted of two starved air mass burn municipal solid waste combustors each with a combustion capacity of 40 tons of MSW per day, and produced energy in the form of saturated steam for customers in the adjacent industrial park. Initially each train utilized a two field electrostatic precipitator (ESP) as the air pollution control (APC) device. In 1996, a materials recovery system (MRF) was constructed in front of the waste combustors to remove problem/objectionable items most of which are recyclable. This facility has been a tremendous success providing many benefits including reduced stack emissions, lower O & M costs for the WTE units, and revenues from the sales of extracted recyclables. In 1998 Polk began injecting powdered activated carbon (PAC) into the flue gas of each unit upstream of the ESP to attain compliance with new State limits for dioxin/furans and mercury. Then in 2000 Polk County proceeded with an APC retrofit project designed to meet revised EPA emission guidelines which set more stringent limits for pollutants currently regulated and added limits for several other pollutants previously unregulated. In 2001 and 2004 Polk County performed research demonstration projects substituting screened WTE combined ash for a portion of natural aggregate in two asphalt road construction projects. Both projects passed stringent environmental testing and demonstrated superior strength and flexibility performance compared to conventional asphalt. Polk County is now proceeding with the installation of a turbine/generator to produce renewable electricity with excess steam. The electricity produced will be used to reduce the demand for incoming power from the local utility. Initially this may be only a twenty-five percent reduction but has the potential to be more in the event one or more of the steam customers reduces their dependence on steam from the WTE plant. All of these projects received funding assistance from the State of Minnesota in the form of Capital Assistance Grants. In 2003 the WTE plant and MRF became debt free and Polk County lowered the tip fee resulting in a disposal rate that is fairly competitive with that of most out of state landfills. This paper will discuss the development, success, and benefits of this completely integrated solid waste management system for these five counties located in Northwest Minnesota.


Author(s):  
Raymond H. Schauer ◽  
Leah K. Richter ◽  
Tom Henderson

Created in 1978, the Solid Waste Authority of Palm Beach County (Authority) has developed an “award winning” solid waste management system that includes franchised solid waste collections and the following facilities to service the residents and businesses in Palm Beach County, Florida: • North County Resource Recovery Facility (NCRRF); • Residential and Commercial Recovered Materials Processing Facility; • Five Transfer Stations; • Class I Landfill; • Class III Landfill; • Biosolids Pelletization Facility; • Ferrous Processing Facility; • Woody Waste Recycling Facility; • Composting Facility; and • Household Hazardous Waste Facility. The Authority has proactively planned and implemented its current integrated solid waste management program to ensure disposal capacity through 2021. However, even in consideration of the current economic climate, the Authority anticipates continued population growth and associated new development patterns that will significantly increase demands on its solid waste system, requiring it to reevaluate and update its planning to accommodate future growth. The NCRRF, the Authority’s refuse derived fuel waste-to-energy facility, has performed very well since its start up in 1989 processing over 13 million tons of MSW, saving valuable landfill space and efficiently producing clean renewable energy. As the NCRRF has reached the end of its first 20 year operating term, it became necessary to complete a comprehensive refurbishment to ensure its continued reliable service for a second 20 year term and beyond providing for continued disposal capacity and energy production for the Authority’s customers. Separately, the Authority also recognized that the refurbishment alone will not provide any additional disposal capacity for the County. The County’s anticipated growth necessitated that the Authority evaluate several options for long-term processing and disposal capacity, resulting in a decision to expand its WTE capacity with a new mass burn facility, the first facility of its kind to be constructed in Florida in more than a decade, reaffirming its commitment to waste-to-energy. The planned 3,000 TPD expansion will provide a total disposal capacity of 5,000 TPD generating approximately 150MW of renewable energy. The decision to proceed with the expansion was approved by the Authority’s Board in October 2008. The Authority, with its Consulting Engineer, Malcolm Pirnie, Inc., has since made significant progress in the facility’s implementation including the completion of the preliminary design, submittal of environmental permit applications, ongoing procurement of a full service vendor, issuance of revenue bonds for project financing, and commencing extensive public outreach. This paper will focus on the development of the new mass burn facility and an update of the status of activities conducted to date including, permitting, financing, vendor procurement, design, and public outreach, as well as will highlight several innovative design, procurement, permitting, and financing features of this landmark project for the Authority, such as: • Utilization of SCR technology for control of NOx emission; • Incorporation of rainwater harvesting and water reuse; • Utilization of iterative procurement process designed to obtain vendor input in a competitive environment; and • Financing approach designed to preserve alternative minimum tax benefits.


Author(s):  
Harvey W. Gershman ◽  
David L. Seader

For almost 30 years, the Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County has been relying on one of the more innovative approaches to waste management. Since the early 1970s, the now 1,000 tons per day WTE facility has been the primary energy source for supplying steam and chilled water for a downtown district energy system serving some 39 buildings. A recent review of alternatives has resulted in Metro deciding to close the facility and replace it with a more traditional district energy supply system and at the same time re-engineer its solid waste management programs to include more efficient collection and recycling programs. This paper will present the planning process and analysis that were done; describe the key factors that led to Metro Nashville’s decisions; detail the procurement and development process that has been initiated; and outline the timetable for implementing the decided upon changes. The authors believe this case study will provide insights for other WTE projects that from time to time struggle with peaceful co-existence with other elements of integrated solid waste management. The authors have been serving as advisors to Metro throughout this process. Mr. Gershman has recently been designated by Metro as its overall Project Manager for its District Energy System.


Author(s):  
Raymond H. Schauer ◽  
Leah K. Richter

Created in 1978, the Solid Waste Authority of Palm Beach County (Authority) has developed an “award winning” solid waste management system that includes the following facilities to service the residents and businesses in Palm Beach County, Florida: • North County Resource Recovery Facility (NCRRF); • Residential and Commercial Recovered Materials Processing Facility; • Six Transfer Stations; • Class I Landfill; • Class III Landfill; • Biosolids Processing Facility; • Ferrous Processing Facility; • Woody Waste Recycling Facility; • Composting Facility; and • Two Household Hazardous Waste Facilities. The Authority has proactively planned and implemented an integrated program to provide for the long term, reliable, economically sound and environmentally sustainable management of solid waste in Palm Beach County. The County’s anticipated growth necessitated that the Authority evaluate several options for long-term processing and disposal capacity. This resulted in a decision to expand its WTE capacity with a new mass burn facility, the first facility of its kind to be constructed in the US in almost two decades, reaffirming its commitment to waste-to-energy. The planned 3,000 TPD facility will provide the Authority with a total disposal capacity of 5,000 TPD generating approximately 150MW of renewable energy. The decision to proceed with the expansion was approved by the Authority’s Board in October 2008. The Authority, with its Consulting Engineer, Malcolm Pirnie/ARCADIS, has since made significant progress in the implementation of this landmark project including the completion of the preliminary design, securing environmental permits, procuring a full service vendor, issuance of nearly $600 million revenue bonds for signing an electrical sales contract, and ongoing extensive public outreach efforts. This presentation will focus on the ongoing development of the new mass burn facility and an update of the status of activities conducted to date such as: • Environmental Permitting – Issuance of the PPSA Conditions of Certification and submittal of the Post Certification/Pre Construction requirements; • Vendor Procurement – Iterative procurement process designed to obtain vendor input through final selection and contract award of a full service vendor (Design, Build and Operate); • Preliminary Design – Innovative design features such as the utilization of SCR technology for control of NOx emission and incorporation of rainwater harvesting and water reuse; • Public Outreach – the Authority’s efforts to keep the public informed through mass mailings, community meetings, television commercials and educational materials for all audiences; and • Financing – Approach designed to preserve alternative minimum tax benefits.


Author(s):  
Ram Tewari ◽  
Jairaj Gosine ◽  
Scott McIlvaine

Sustainability and Going Green have been the recent buzz words in the solid waste management field. These two words have an ongoing impact on planning (for either a new project or for refurbishment), performance, people, planet Earth and our quality of life. So the challenge for solid waste professionals is to optimize a balance among environment, natural resources and solid waste management technologies. This paper describes such a sustainability and greening effort through a public–private partnership initiative for an integrated solid waste management for our two Broward County, Florida facilities. Water conservation and use of wastewater, experimental use of waste (sludge) from water treatment plants, continuous quality improvement by monitoring, process optimization and design approaches are some of the on-going areas where efficiencies are being realized.


2016 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. 569-579 ◽  
Author(s):  
Y. Sadef ◽  
A. S. Nizami ◽  
S. A. Batool ◽  
M. N. Chaudary ◽  
O. K. M. Ouda ◽  
...  

2021 ◽  
pp. 0734242X2110115
Author(s):  
Wesley N Oehmig ◽  
Justin Roessler ◽  
Abdul Mulla Saleh ◽  
Kyle A Clavier ◽  
Christopher C Ferraro ◽  
...  

A common perception of plasma arc treatment systems for municipal solid waste incineration ash is that the resulting vitrified slag is inert from an environmental perspective. Research was conducted to examine this hypothesis and to assess whether reduced pollutant release results from pollutant depletion during the process of the ash with plasma, or encapsulation in the glassy vitrified matrix. The concentrations of four discrete municipal solid waste incineration ash samples before and after plasma arc vitrification in a bench-scale unit were compared. Slag and untreated ash samples were leached using several standardized approaches and mobility among the four metals of interest (e.g. As, Cd, Pb and Sb) varied across samples, but was generally high (as high as 100% for Cd). Comparison across methods did not indicate substantial encapsulation in the vitrified slag, which suggests that reduced pollutant release from plasma arc vitrified slag is due to pollutant depletion by volatilization, not encapsulation. This has significant implications for the management of air pollution control residues from waste-to-energy facilities using plasma arc vitrification.


2011 ◽  
Vol 2011 ◽  
pp. 1-5 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elmira Shamshiry ◽  
Behzad Nadi ◽  
Mazlin Bin Mokhtar ◽  
Ibrahim Komoo ◽  
Halimaton Saadiah Hashim ◽  
...  

The population growth, changing consumption patterns, and rapid urbanization contribute significantly to the growing volumes of solid waste that are generated in urban settings. As the rate of urbanization increases, demand on the services of solid waste management increases. The rapid urban growth in Langkawi Island, Malaysia, combined with the increasing rates of solid waste production has provided evidence that the traditional solid waste management practices, particularly the methods of waste collection and disposal, are inefficient and quite nonsustainable. Accordingly, municipal managers and planners in Langkawi need to look for and adopt a model for solid waste management that emphasizes an efficient and sustainable management of solid wastes in Langkawi Island. This study presents the current practices of solid waste management in Langkawi Island, describes the composition of the solid waste generated in that area, and presents views of local residents and tourist on issues related to solid waste management like the aesthetic value of the island environment. The most important issue of this paper is that it is the first time that integrated solid waste management is investigated in the Langkawi Island.


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