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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0804.002 2006-2008 TO: County Clerk Chairman, Environmental Management Committee SUBJECT: Trip Report This report summarizes events/information obtained during my trip to Germany, 28 October - 1 November 2007 and visits to two waste to energy facilities in the former East Germany at Zorbau and Erfurt. The trip organized by Wheelabrator Technologies, Inc and Von Roll Umwelttechnik AG, the consortium that was selected by the committee considering bids during the RFP process for a new waste-to-energy facility in East Hawaii, was designed to acquaint a County Council representative first hand with a state-of-the-art waste to energy facility in Europe, provide an overall view of the capabilities of the companies involved in the construction and operation of these facilities, and to engage in discussions, questions and answers regarding aspects of this proposed system for Hawaii County. I met with the following individuals in Berlin on 28 October: Dave Raymond - Wheelabrator, VP for Engineering, Hampton, NH. Roger Anderson - Wheelabrator, Director of Engineeering, Hampton, NH. Hans-Marian Kogler - Von Roll, Contracts Agent, Zurich, Switzerland. Andres Kronenberg - Von Roll, VP and Head of Marketing and Sales, Zurich, Switzerland. The trip itinerary had us travel as a group on Monday, 29 October, from Berlin to the facility at Zorbau, After a plant tour, we traveled to Erfurt, stayed overnight and visited the facility there on Tuesday, 30 October, returning to Berlin later that day. BACKGROUND: Wheelabrator, headquartered in Hampton, NH, is a wholly- owned subsidiary of Waste Management, Inc and operates waste-to-energy facilties throughout the US. Von Roll is the developer of the technology currently employed by Wheelabrator, which functions as the US partner for construction and operation of these facilities in North America. Comm: No. 104-Z Ref. To. OrawnW E WI Ref. Date NOV 19 2W7 ZORBAU: this privately owned facility in operation since 2005 can handle up tol,000 tons per day or 300,000 tons of solid waste per year. Up to 200 trucks can be unloaded at the plant per day. It is constructed with two boilers and 10 bays, operates on a 24/7 basis, and can generate 28,300 MW of electricity sufficient for approximately 40,000 households. I toured various buildings within the complex, the computerized operating room and the furnance. This facility is larger than what would be required for East Hawaii's trash and includes capabilities not part of the County's RFP in order to conform to the stricter regulations set forth by the German government. I have asked for more information describing the level of air quality controls at the plant, being informed that these controls are also stricter than currently demanded by EPA. There were absolutely no odors during the course of my visit when the plant was in normal operation, and all individuals whom I questioned, acknowledged the plant as being "odor-free". ERFURT: this is a municipally owned facility in operation since 2006 and# can handle approximately 275 tons per day or 90,000 tons per year. It is constructed with one boiler, operates on a 24/7 basis, generating 5,000 KW of electricity sufficient to supply 4,400 households. The plant features a shredding component (not a part of a proposed East Hawaii facility) which diverts approximately 20% of the waste to a separate composting process. I toured the plant and observed the same process as at Zorbau, as well as the administration/operations building. No odors were noticed outside the plant during any portion of my visit at this facility. OBSERVATIONS: - both plants are modern examples of the waste-to-energy technology currently in operation in communities in Europe. As I understand it, Germany demands cleaner air standards and stricter controls over trash disposal operations than the EPA. The Von Roll technology exceeds these stricter standards. - In evaluating this technology from a European standpoint, one must remember that a much more comprehensive recycling program exists throughout Europe in comparison with Hawaii County. Trash brought to the Zorbau facility for example does not have a tipping floor since the trash contains almost no non-combustible materials. Since June 2005, Germany mandates throughout the country that no untreated garbage/trash of any type be placed in landfills. Both facilities use energy generated through their own operations to supply power to the plant in addition to supplying electricity to local households. A waste-to-energy facility is not a panacea for East Hawaii's trash problems. It remains only one component of an overall system that must include a much more aggressive recycling effort. SUMMARY: the trip was most helpful in providing me with a better overall view of the current waste-to-energy technology. During my 9 i/z years living in Germany and Austria, I was only somewhat acquainted with this technology, but always had a positive point of view as to advantages of this system. This trip confirmed my previous view; this technology works, it is safe, it is clean, I think it significantly exceeds EPA standards (I still await further documentation to make this conclusion), it would be a great advantage to the island in the long-run. The real question here remains the cost. I had no discussions with any of the representatives regarding specific cost factors, but I did make it clear that cost will likely be the deciding factor. OTHER: many thanks to the Von Roll representatives who assisted with the organization, transportation and other aspects of this trip. I did enjoy being back in Europe after more than 10 years, greatly enjoyed the German cooking once again, was humbled by how much I remembered of the German language and how little, saw the many changes taking place in East Germany (we passed more than 400 wind-turbines on the autobahn between Berlin and Zorbau), and sampled once again the awful German weather at this time of the year (the sun shone maybe three hours during the entire time I was there). It was a most interesting visit.