Waste-to-energy permitting sourcebook

Environmental issues, regulatory processes and approvals important in obtaining a permit to construct and/or operate a waste-to-energy (WTE) facility are identified and discussed. Environmental issues include: (1) air emission levels, their control and potential impacts, (2) ash leachability, treatment, and disposal, (3) potential health risks from emissions, and (4) other issues such as need/benefit and public perception of WTE. Laws, regulations and approvals that can affect project development are identified and listed, and potential regulatory trends are discussed. A general permit acquisition plan is also presented. An analysis of environmental and regulatory data obtained from the literature, regulatory agencies, and specific projects is presented. California and Massachusetts, both with regulations generally more stringent than federal regulations and considered environmentally conservative, were selected for detailed state regulatory review. Two project case histories (Commerce Refuse-to-Energy (RTE) Project in California and SEMASS WTE Project in Massachusetts) were selected to illustrate: (1) how regulations are actually applied to a project, (2) project-specific permit and operating conditions, and (3) project-specific environmental issues. Modern WTE plots employ state-of-the-art air emission control technologies and strategies to reduce air emission is to levels below regulatory requirements and to reduce estimated health risks to within EPA's acceptable risk range. WTE ash leachate can exhibit hazardous waste characteristics, primarily lead and cadmium. However, modern landfills utilize liners and leachate collection systems to prevent infiltration of leachate into the groundwater supply. Modern WTE plants employ dry systems and have zero process wastewater discharge