Norfolk County Council voted by 48 votes to 30 to terminate the contract for the proposed incinerator at Saddlebow at an extraordinary meeting in April.

Council officers had said that, due to delays in securing planning permission, the controversial project no longer offered good value for money, and councillors agreed to ditch it.

In May, the estimated cost of cancelling the contract was put at just over £33.7m. That included £20.3m to Cory Wheelabrator – the company which would have built and run the burner; public inquiry costs of £1.6m and estimated interest rate related costs of £11.8m.

The first £11.8m of that bill was paid in July, but council bosses have been locked in months of arguments about the fine details of the contract and how much that means the council must pay Cory Wheelabrator.
In September, it was announced the compensation would be “considerably lower” than the £20.3m originally estimated.

But at a meeting this week, Tom McCabe, interim director of environment, transport and development at Norfolk County Council, told councillors the final figure had yet to be agreed.

He said: “The discussion with Cory Wheelabrator is ongoing and we would hope to have it resolved by Christmas.

“It’s premature to say it will be done by then, though. It could be done before that or it could drag on for longer.”
Norfolk County Council is still trying to come up with a long-term solution for how to deal with the county’s waste.

But, in the short-term, a deal has been struck with their counterparts in Suffolk for rubbish to be burned at a newly-built incinerator in Great Blakenham.

Over the next year, about 40,000 tonnes of Norfolk’s residual household waste will be hauled down the A140 to be burned at the plant.

• What do you think of the incinerator saga? Write, giving full contact details, to Letters Editor, Prospect House, Rouen Road, Norwich NR1 1RE.
by: http://www.edp24.co.uk/news/politics/norfolk_incinerator_bill_wrangle_could_continue_until_after_christmas_1_3823390

CPASA (Community Partners Against Substance Abuse) Director Dawn Conerton was thrilled to announce the new purchase.

She confirmed the organization was able to use money from its reserves to help with the purchase. However, CPASA is still looking for donations to help make up the cost and also to help with the upkeep of equipment.

The incinerator is located at the Princeton Police Department. A fence and a shelter still needs to be built around the incinerator before it’s used.

As previously reported in the BCR and the Putnam County Record, the state made the decision to no longer dispose of prescription drugs, forcing CPASA to look into the purchase of an incinerator to continue its program, which allows residents to dispose of their unused prescription medications in a safe manner.

The cost of the incinerator came to around $10,000.

Since CPASA’s formation in July 2010, it has worked to keep unused prescription drugs off the street. Since September 2014, the program has collected and disposed of about 7,235 pounds of drugs.

Conerton explained how CPASA has worked hard to get the incinerator to help maintain the P2D2 program.

She said with the incinerator, CPASA will be able to continue educating the public about the safe way to dispose of drugs and remind them not to flush medication into the water supply.

“It hurts the water supply, and we also are getting them out of cupboards to prevent them from getting into the wrong hands,” she said. “We now have a way to actually dispose of them completely.”

With the incinerator, CPASA now plans to host more collection days to help get rid of even more unused medications.

Princeton Police Chief Tom Root was also thrilled with the arrival of the incinerator. He explained the incinerator can get up to 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit and takes about 20 minutes to burn down the material. The drugs are burned down to a fine powder, which is bagged and taken to the landfill.

The incinerator arrived at about the right time, as Root said there is currently about 1,500 pounds of pills to dispose of from the Bureau and Putnam counties area.

Root said CPASA plans to charge a fee to communities who don’t provide a donation for the incinerator. The fees will help maintain the incinerator and help keep up with the purchase of diesel fuel.

CPASA is still looking for donations to help make up for the cost of the incinerator and to help continue the work CPASA does throughout the year.

“CPASA appreciates all the donations. We would never have believed in such a short amount of time this would be a reality,” Conerton said. “This community is so awesome with their support and knowing how important it was to help. It’s widespread and something that’s going to help everyone.”

CPASA is also hosting a fundraiser on Saturday, Aug. 1, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. in Zearing Park. More details to come on the event.

information from: http://www.bcrnews.com/2015/07/10/cpasa-success-up-in-smoke/azhjtuw/

SAN DIEGO – A local company has joined the front lines of an effort that has sparked a lot of debate: how to dispose of Ebola waste.

A representative from Envitech just returned from Texas after the first batch of medical waste was disposed of this past weekend.

The spacesuit-like gear is just one reminder of how contagious Ebola can be. The virus attacks the organs and liquefies parts of the body, with blood and other liquids seeping out of all body openings.

The medical supplies used to treat the first U.S. Ebola patient, Thomas Duncan, arrived in a semi-truck at a Galveston facility on Saturday.

“It was kind of all hands on-deck,” said Andy Bartocci, national sales manager at Envitech. He says a company official flew into Texas this weekend.

Envitech’s scrubbing system was installed at the Galveston site earlier this year. Here is how it works: once the Ebola-tainted supplies are incinerated at more than 2,000 degrees, the scrubber removes all the pollutants from the exhaust gas.

“We were on hand as they were burning this waste and the system operated flawlessly throughout that time,” said Bartocci.

The air scrubbers are newly designed after more stringent EPA standards went into effect this month.

“Somebody is probably more exposed to harmful pollutants pumping gas into their automobile than they would be by working or living around one of the medical waste incinerators,” said Bartocci.

Still, some states do not want that waste. Missouri’s attorney general is seeking a court order barring the waste from being shipped to a St. Louis incinerator. Among the concerns is the handling before it gets into the incinerator.

As for California, the state has a ban on the burning of medical waste, so any Ebola waste would have to be shipped to another state on public highways.

Many states like California began cracking down on medical waste incineration because hospitals were sending materials that did not need to be burned, which led to more pollutants.

Some are calling for California to reconsider these restrictions when it comes to Ebola waste.

by: http://www.10news.com/news/local-company-helps-dispose-of-ebola-tainted-waste-10202014

GALVESTON, Texas

Incinerators differ from the simpler methods of open burning as the operator has a higher degree of control over the burning process. The resulting higher temperatures, longer holding times and greater turbulence lead to more complete combustion of the waste. Although a wider range of wastes can be destroyed using high temperature single or dual-chambered incinerators, determined efforts should still be taken to reduce the quantity and type of waste generated and to implement other changes which would result in reductions in air emissions. Refer to section 3 for further information proper waste management practices and a listing of what waste can and cannot be incinerated.

The incinerator manufacturer’s operating instructions must be followed at all times to ensure designed temperature, holding time and turbulence conditions are achieved and to avoid damage to the facility. When operating during winter months, additional care must be taken because cold air introduced into the primary and secondary chambers may make it difficult for normal operating temperatures to be achieved. Operators must be properly trained and qualified to operate the equipment under both normal and emergency conditions. Owners are strongly encouraged to consult system manufacturers or other qualified persons with expertise before purchasing an incinerator. Additional guidance on the selection of incinerator technologies and their operational requirements can be obtained by referring to Environment Canada’s Technical Document for Batch Waste Incineration.

The installation and operation of monitoring and control systems is critical for the proper and safe operation of any incinerator.  The design, installation, certification and operation of continuous emissions monitoring systems (CEMS) should comply with the principles described in Environment Canada’s Protocols and Performance Specifications for Continuous Monitoring of Gaseous Emissions  from Thermal Power Generation. While the document is written for power generation facilities, the principles apply equally well to other types of facilities and continuous emissions monitoring systems. For incinerators operating in Nunavut, key operational parameters must be monitored at all times using on-line instruments capable of continuously measuring the combustion process and stack emissions quality. These instruments should be equipped with visible and audible alarms and be on-line whenever the incinerator is in operation, including ‘start-up’ and ‘cool down’ phases. Table 3 lists the monitoring and control system requirements.

Snap Lake Mine, 220 kilometres northeast of Yellowknife, where elevated levels of dioxins and furans were pumped into the air. | Photo Fire Prevention Services

Last July, two incinerators at De Beers’ Snap Lake Mine were belching out clouds of black smoke, one sending an average of 65 times the accepted national limit of cancer-causing toxins into the air.

The hugely elevated levels of dioxins and furans — released when plastic is burned or garbage is not fully incinerated — were recorded during a four-day “stack test.” According to the World Health Organization, “dioxins are highly toxic and can cause reproductive and developmental problems, damage the immune system, interfere with hormones and also cause cancer.” The Canada-Wide Standards recommends emission levels for dioxins and furans not exceed 80 picograms per cubic metre. The company contracted to do the testing at Snap Lake found that one of the mine’s incinerators was emitting 6.5 times the acceptable limit, while the other incinerator was emitting a whopping 65 times the acceptable limit (5,220 picograms per cubic metre on average, as

It’s unclear how long this was going on for, though the report noted the problem was clearly visible: “Black opaque smoke was noted for all tests early in the incineration cycle.”

De Beers did not respond to EDGE’s request for an interview by the time of publication. However, according to a letter from De Beers’ Environment and Permitting Superintendent, Alexandra Hood, sent to the GNWT and Environment Canada in January, the root cause of the problem was “not following standardized work practices,” and running the incinerators, which were only installed in 2013, at too low a temperature.

Since flunking the test, De Beers has retrained staff, rewritten operating procedures and brought in new policy to shut down the incinerators if they’re not meeting the correct temperatures (if it’s safe to do so), according to Hood’s letter. An inspection of the Snap Lake incinerators by a GNWT Lands Officer in March suggests De Beers has ameliorated the problem, at least in part: “No concerns were noted during this inspection,” it states, and “the west incinerator which was burning waste at the time of inspection was emitting clear exhaust gas with no black smoke coming from the stack.”

Whether or not sufficient steps have been taken, however, won’t be known for years: the next stack test is not scheduled until 2019, according to a source close to the issue wishing to remain anonymous.

No GNWT regulation

The fact that, for an undetermined period of time around July 2014, the Snap Lake incinerators were pumping out unacceptable levels of toxic emissions is troublesome in itself. But it points to a much larger problem in the territory; the GNWT does not regulate emissions, require companies to meet the CWS, or mandate stack testing. (The Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board, likewise, does not regulate air emissions.)

At several points in her letter, Hood notes the lack of regulation, claiming De Beers “will conform with any regulatory requirements regarding incinerator stack testing once enabling legislation is developed and approved in the NWT.”

Without legislation in place, there is nothing to force De Beers or other groups using incinerators (i.e. every single mine in the territory), to keep their emissions at a safe level or undertake stack testing on a regular basis. Each mine has an Air Quality and Emissions Management Plan as part of its environmental agreement, but these plans only dictate reporting requirements, not actual emission targets. And while Hood claims “deficiencies, as measured against the Canada Wide Standards, will be managed through adaptive management and continuous improvement by De Beers,” there’s little government oversight of this “continuous improvement” and no fines or other mechanisms to force polluting companies to remedy their ways.

This problem has been going on for years. According to a Canadian Press report from 2011, the scientific journal Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management found sediments in a lake near the Ekati Mine that had levels of dioxins and furans 10 times higher than those collected from an uncontaminated lake. The same report cited a 2007 study commissioned by Environment Canada which suggested “extensive, uncontrolled burning of wastes could result in substantial accumulations of dioxins and furans in the local ecosystem, some of which will persist for some 8½ years at levels approaching those considered to be of toxicological concern.”

“In most cases we’re below the level that health agencies would (watch) for…” the study continues, “but we’re getting there. And if you have more incinerators and more burning, you may well exceed those levels.”

The GNWT’s Department of Environment and Natural resources did not return EDGE’s request for comment on the lack of regulation.

Why no regulation?

Back in 2001, the GNWT did sign on to the Canada-Wide Standards of dioxins and furans with all other provinces and territories (except Quebec) as part of a national Accord on Environmental Harmonization.

The document says: “Parties are required to take measures to reduce total releases from anthropogenic sources of dioxins, furans… with the goal of their continuing minimization and where feasible (technically and socio-economically), ultimate elimination.” However, it adds, “each jurisdiction will determine the exact means of ensuring compliance” – basically defanging the document by letting provinces and territories renege on their commitment with no repercussions.

Other jurisdictions have taken proactive steps, bringing in legislation to regulate emissions in line with the CWS. The GNWT has not. They did bring in guidelines for managing biomedical waste in 2005, but they have been unwilling to regulate incinerators at mine sites. Their reason? The “waste incinerators operating at remote industrial sites within the NWT… are located on federal crown land and are not regulated by the Government of the Northwest Territories,” says a report from 2009.

This may have been true in 2009, but post-devolution it’s no longer the case. Since April of last year, the mines are on land managed by the GNWT, yet there have been no moves from legislators to start regulating toxic emissions from mine or other industrial incinerators. The last time the issue was discussed in the legislative assembly in 2011, Weledeh MLA Bob Bromley said a “loophole in environmental rules is allowing a growing number of unregulated waste incinerators to release extremely toxic chemicals into the land and water.” He suggested, “when we take on new powers, we must be ready to move with new law.”

Devolution has come, and incinerators are still operating in an unregulated environment. With all the talk of fracking and opening up new mining projects in the territory, it’s now time, more than ever, for the GNWT to get its act together.

from: https://edgeyk.com/article/mine-spews-toxic-fumes-nwt-air-regulations-not-in-place/

The figure was revealed in the Alice Springs regional waste management facility report for October.

The dead pet you asked the vet to dispose of will end up buried in landfill, in most places across the country, and Alice Springs is no different.

“It’s a combination of horses, dogs, cats, pigs, any animal that dies,” said Alice Springs council technical services director Greg Buxton. “Road kill, kangaroos and that, the rangers pick them up, and you’ve got to dispose of them somewhere hygienic. So we put them at the back of landfill.”

The facility is on track to exceed last year’s total, with 3.7 tonnes deposited in the first quarter of this financial year.

Mr Buxton said most regional councils across the country dispose of dead animals in landfill.

“In the bigger cities they have an incinerator type setting where they cremate them, whereas we don’t have an incinerator here,” he said.

by: http://www.news.com.au/national/northern-territory/central-australias-animal-graveyard/story-fnn3gfdo-1227123002725

THE UNITED Nations have called on a Southport firm to help them tackle the growing Ebola crisis.

The deadly virus, for which there is no known cure, has killed over 4,500 people since an outbreak began in Guinea in 2013, spreading to Liberia and Sierra Leone before the virus made its way into America and Spain.

To combat the spread of the virus thousands of aid workers and doctors from around the world have traveled to West Africa to treat those who have fallen ill and as a result, use tonnes of materials which become hazardous and need to be disposed of via incinerators.

As such, the world’s largest incinerator manufacturer, based on Southport’s Canning Road Industrial estate, has been drafted in by the United Nations to provide a plethora of incinerators for disposing hazardous material.

Bosses at Inciner8 say they are delighted to be working closely with the United Nations for Incinerators to the areas of West Africa currently hit by the deadly Ebola virus.

The range of incinerators available from Inciner8 are ready made for the burning of hazardous waste ranging from the smallest and most mobile medical waste Incinerator to the largest Incinerator capable of burning up to 1000kg per hour.

Paul Niklas, Sales and Marketing director for Inciner8, told The Champion: “We appreciate fully and understand the terrible issues faced by the people of West Africa and the support agencies in place to combat the daily problems that exist.

”We will be endeavouring fully to ensure that we send our products in the quickest possible time with our engineers to support both installation and training as part of our committed service in reducing and eliminating the spread of this disease by transporting contaminated materials to other locations.

“Inciner8 continue to take the lead on many fronts and are currently working with other government agencies and Aid organisations as the innovation leader in the global Incineration market.

”The Ebola incinerators are being made and shipped out as we speak.

“It’s a natural procedure for us; we’ve done this for other disasters such as the war in Iraq.

”During our time in Iraq we had to deal with all sorts of residue, waste and contamination mainly for military purposes. “We’ve also supplied incinerators to the police in South America.

”However the Ebola virus is definitely up there as one of the worst cases we have faced – there is major risk in contaminated medical waste.

“What we do is provide a safe environment for people to burn waste, which is obviously far better than burning it in uncontrolled environments.

”You can take the incinerators to the problem. It’s impossible to guess what will happen next as things are changing on a day-to-day basis.

“We were first contacted about two and a half months ago. Normally we send our own people out, however it’s not something that we’ve been able to do this time as a result of the risk.”

In August 2014, the World Health Organisation declared the West Africa Ebola epidemic to be an international public health emergency.

Urging the world to offer aid to the affected regions, the Director-General said: “Countries affected to date simply do not have the capacity to manage an outbreak of this size and complexity on their own.

”I urge the international community to provide this support on the most urgent basis possible.“

By mid-August 2014, Doctors Without Borders reported the situation in Liberia’s capital Monrovia as ”catastrophic“ and ”deteriorating daily“.

As of October 15, 2014, there have been 17 cases of Ebola treated outside of Africa, four of whom have died.

In early October, Teresa Romero, a 44-year-old Spanish nurse, contracted Ebola after caring for a priest who had been repatriated from west Africa.

This was the first transmission of the virus to occur outside of Africa.

On September 19, Eric Duncan flew from his native Liberia to Texas; five days later he began showing symptoms and visited a hospital, but was sent home.

His condition worsened and he returned to the hospital on September 28, where he eventually passed away.

Health officials confirmed a diagnosis of Ebola on September 30 – the first case in the United States.

On October 12, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed that a nurse in Texas who had treated Duncan was found to be positive for the Ebola virus, the first known case of the disease to be contracted in the United States.

On October 15 a second Texas healthcare worker was confirmed to have the virus.

British Nurse Will Pooley, who survived Ebola, has already returned to Sierra Leone where he caught the deadly virus.

by: http://www.champnews.com/newsstory.aspx?story=3058174

The stench coming from the room is nauseating. Its not the typical smell of rotting cabbage leaves or chicken intestines.

It’s human waste and decaying body parts.

Tonota clinic is facing a serious health hazard. For seven months the incinerator has not been working and piles of red waste disposal bags are bursting from the room housing the defunct engine.“Do you know what’s in these bags?” asked a clinic employee who is so fearful for his health that he has risked being identified and sacked in order to expose the appalling conditions at the clinic.

“It’s human placentas and dirty pampers from patients suffering from chronic diseases. It’s disgusting,” he says, furrowing his eyebrows to emphasis the point.

“There are worms as big as my index finger and the stench is unbearable, but no action is being taken,” he adds.

The employee (name withheld) confirms the incinerator has not been operational for the past seven months.

He maintains that authorities both at District Health Management Team (DHMT) and Ministry level were informed, but no action has yet been taken.

According to the concerned employee, the trouble started when responsibility for the clinic was transferred from the Ministry of Local Government and placed under the Ministry of Health.
The malfunctioning incinerator has also affected clinics in villages surrounding Tonota who use the facility. “I was in Mmandunyane recently. The situation is also bad there since they have nowhere to dispose their clinical waste,” said the source.

Clinics in Mandunyane, Semotswane and Shashe rely on Tonota for disposal of their waste.

Adding to the woes of employees it is said that they last received uniform and protective clothing in 2011.

“There is also acute shortage of accommodation. Staff flats that were gutted by fire in 2011 are yet to be fixed,” the worker revealed.

He claimed that there are nurses who were transferred to Nyangabwe Referral Hospital, who were paid their transfer and hotel allowances but are still occupying staff houses in Tonota.

“All this is happening because there is lack of leadership. I believe only the President can help employees, but when he was in the area last weekend for a rally he neglected to come here.”

The source took The Voice on a tour of the clinic and showed us the dilapidated staff flats, damaged emergency fire pumps and tattered sheets in the maternity ward.

“What kind of a health facility, home to bed ridden patients, operates without an emergency fire pump?”
Efforts to get a comment from the clinic Matron Thatayaone Moitebatsi did not bear fruit as she referred all questions to a certain Dr Ayele at DHMT.

When contacted for comment Dr Ayele asked for a face-to-face interview but later called to cancel the appointment.

“We are aware off the situation in Tonota, but you know I don’t have the authority to talk to the media.

Please send a questionnaire and I will forward it to the relevant people,” was all Dr Ayele was prepared to say.