Re: PCBs burned in the South make their way up to the Great

["Jon Campbell" <jon@cqs.com>]

  These figures are all very nice, but not very
  meaningful. It is well known that
  the dump stack, which prevents rotary kiln incinerators
  
  from exploding when
  there is too much internal pressure, is UNMONITORED
  and gets
  used FREQUENTLY during real burns of hazwaste.
  
  Note the case of Jacksonville, AR, in which a
  hazwaste
  incinerator
  increased (measurably) the dioxin in people's blood
  in
  the area
  by 22%. The combustion efficiency of this incinerator,
  
  it was proven
  by Pat Costner of Greenpeace, actually had a burn
  efficiency of
  99.96 percent, increasing amount of dioxins, etc. by
  a
  factor
  of 400.
  
  The EPA admitted in court that they COULD NOT PRODUCE
  TECHNICAL DATA
  TO PROVE THAT ANY HAZARDOUS WASTE INCINERATOR HAD A
  DESTRUCTIVE EFFICIENCY OF 99.9999%. On the basis of
  this admission,
  the Jacksonville incinerator was shut by court order.
  
  One of the major reasons they cannot produce that
  data
  is because of
  the dump stack...
  
  Hazwaste incineration is a BAD IDEA and anyone living
  near one
  or who might have one moving in should seriously
  consider
  opposing and closing it.
  
  Jon
  
  
  ----
  From: asagady@sojourn.com
  To: Multiple recipients of list <dioxin-l@essential.org
  
  >
  Date: Friday, August 01, 1997 1:28 PM
  Subject: Re: PCBs burned in the South make their way
  up to the Great
  
  
  >>Burning 500 million pounds at 99.9999% destruction
  removal equivalence
  >>(DRE) may release 5,000 pounds of PCBs if the
  dielectric fluid is one
  >>million parts per million; 3,750 pounds of PCBs
  released at 750,000 ppm,
  >>and 2,500 pounds PCBs at 500,000 ppm PCBs.
  Dielectric fluids range from
  >>50% - 100% pure PCBs (or 500,000 - 1,000,000 ppm).
  We do not need any
  >>more PCBs in the air, water, food chain or
  ecosystems. Incineration will
  >>certainly release PCBs since it ain't perfect, and
  the potential is for
  >>far more PCBs to be released than this conservative
  calculation.
  >>99.99999% is based upon a Trial Burn using a
  surrogate chlorinated
  >>compound-NOT PCBs-and this is pie in the sky as far
  as incineration
  >>goes.
  >>
  
  The math is off in this statement concerning PCB
  waste
  burning theoretical
  calculations
  circulated on dioxin-l from a Houston web site
  
  Why would burning PCB waste with 1 PPM PCB release at
  99.9999%
  theoretical DRE release more PCB than burning the
  same
  amount of PCB waste
  at the same DRE if the waste had 750,000 ppm or
  500,000 ppm PCBs
  for theoretical undestroyed PCBs?
  
  
  500,000,000 pounds =  5  E8 pounds of waste
  
  99.9999% DRE is equivolent to  0.0001% PCB undestroyed/
  
  released
  
  0.0001% PCB undestroy/released =  1 E-6 proportion of
  PCB release during burning
  
  1 ppm PCB content = 1E-6 proportion of PCB in a waste
  which is 1 PPM PCB
  
  
  
  Therefore, for your  1 PPM PCB waste:
  
  In 500,000,000 pounds of  1 PPM PCB waste
  there is    5 E8  * 1 E-6 total PCBs
  or 500 pounds of PCBs in the waste to be burned.
  
  If these 500 pounds of PCBs are burned with a DRE of
  99.9999% then after
  incineration there is     5 E 2   *  1 E-6 or  5 E -4
  undestroyed or
  
  0.0005 pounds of PCB emitted/undestroyed at  99.9999%
  theoretical DRE
  
  
  
  For your 500,000 ppm PCB waste:
  
  In 500,000,000 pounds of 500,000 ppm PCB waste
  there is  5 E8  *  5 E 5  * 1 E-6 total PCBs
  or 25 E7 pounds or  250,000,000 pounds of PCB
  
  If these 250,000,000 pounds of PCB are burned with a
  DRE of 99.9999% then
  after incineration there is  2.5 E7 * 1 E-6  or   
  2.5
  E 1    or
  
  25 pounds of PCBs emitted/undestroyed at 99.9999% DRE
  
  
  
  The above are theoretical emission rates and do not
  deal
  with PICs, PCDD/F, HCL, etc.
  
  Neil Carman's point about fugitive emissions is a
  good
  one.
  
  
  
  -------------------------------------------------------
  
  ---------------------
  Alex J. Sagady & Associates        Email:  asagady@sojo
  
  urn.com
  Environmental Consulting and Database Systems
  PO Box 39  East Lansing, MI  48826-0039
  (517) 332-6971 (voice); (517) 332-8987 (fax)