proposed incinerator in Ireland

[ttweed@wildrockies.org (Tony Tweedale)]

>medical waste, and everything else they can come up with. She is looking
>for >alternative treatment methods for all the above (!) -- but I guess
>the solvents are >the real sticking point. Can folks point her towards
>better methods for dealing >with solvents?
>
>Neil

that doesn't sound right.

I know a lot of solvent burning goes on, even for chlorinated ones that
have less BTU/gallon (they became wildly popular for being cheap and not
flammable).  But don't companies built around solvent recovery, like Safety
Kleen here in the USA, also accomplish reuse via settling,
filtration/Carbon, centrifuge-ing, fractional distilation, osmosis, etc
etc.?  And  thousands of companies reuse solvents on-site by the same
technologies  I can see not practising waste segregation--mixing solvents
and other waste fluids--makes it tougher, but, again, it is done.  Anyone?

I'd still like to hear other people's thoughts, but after checking my
solvent altern's file I have some specific suggestions.  All 50 U.S.
states, I think, now have P2 programs, and they all cut their teeth on the
solvent alternatives/resuse issue.  Minnesota's program (MN-TAP, tel
612-627-4646) has a list of solvent recycling eqpmnt vendors.  Michigan's
(Off. of Waste Reduction Services, 517-335-1178 has factsheets on off &
on-site solveent recovery, incl eqpmnt suppliers).  The City of L.A. has a
pretty good program, if I recall.  No doubt there is much more info out
there.

So maybe what you have here is an opportunity to educate solvent users.
Chlorinated solvents is the market for chlorine that has seen the biggest
drop, I believ.  This is in large part 'cause of the ozone protection and
ozone destruction (smog) efforts, in addition to toxicity concerns.  It was
amazing how quickly similarly non-flammable, non-halogenated solvents took
market share.  Physical cleaning methods, hi tech & not, have also become
popular.  Your incinerator is an opportunity to point out that the area is
far behind the rest of the world's industry in saving costs (incl.
regulatory ones) and protecting worker health and the env.    The state P2
agencies & US EPA's Off. of Research & Development & P2 Office have lots of
studies & Project summaries (ORD's) showing the savings that can be
achieved by switching, typically to basically aqueous solvents, or by
recovery.

Finally, a P2 consultant with experience in solvent alternatives &
reduction is Dr Rbt Pojasek in Boston (rpojasek@sprynet.com).

Tony Tweedale

Causality is a concept not subject to empirical demonstration. -David Hume
(1711-'76)

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