By rdnewsNOW staff

New equipment for Prentiss landfill to handle wood burning, bulb disposal

Jun 6, 2019 | 1:19 PM

The Lacombe Regional Waste Services Commission (LRWSC) has announced the purchase of two new pieces of equipment to reduce atmospheric emissions and costs at the Prentiss Landfill Site.

The first piece of equipment is an Air Burner S-220 (pictured above) to replace the current practice of “open-pit burning” of wood waste at the site.

Officials say the new burner will reduce the amount of smoke created during the wood waste burning process by keeping particulates and smoke trapped in a burn box via an air curtain. The air curtain is created by a motor-driven fan that spreads air at a high velocity rate across the top of the burn box and down into the burning material. This keeps particulates contained, and ensures a more complete combustion process at higher temperatures, resulting in a much cleaner burn than open-pit burning.

The Air Burner S-220 can process approximately five tonnes of wood waste per hour, and is most efficient when burning large amounts of material at one time. Due to the volumes it can handle, the unit will only need to operate on an average of one to two times per week, based on the current amount of material processed at the landfill.

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“We are looking forward to employing this new technology for burning wood waste at the Prentiss Landfill Site. We are committed to being a good neighbor to the surrounding land owners, and doing our part to be environmentally responsible,” said LRWSC Commission Manager Jay Hohn.

The second piece of equipment LRWSC has purchased is a Bulb Eater 3L Crusher for fluorescent light tubes containing mercury, u-tubes, and compact fluorescent bulbs.

The bulb crusher fits on a standard metal 45-gallon drum and is fitted with a rotating device to crush the tubes and bulbs. The unit collects particulates and mercury vapours utilizing a multi-stage filtering system. The resulting crushed material is 100 per cent recyclable, as the process captures over 99.99 per cent of the mercury vapours released.

One drum can hold approximately 1350 four-foot fluorescent light tubes, and once the drum is filled, the entire drum is sent away for materials recycling and safe disposal.

The previous method of collecting fluorescent tubes and bulbs from the public, on-site storage and collection by recycling processors was quite costly for the LRWSC. By employing the new crusher, the costs related to accepting and recycling the tubes and bulbs will drop by approximately 75 per cent.

“The acquisition of the bulb and tube crusher greatly reduces our on-site storage and handling needs, and it is a much safer and cost-effective way for us to recycle light tubes containing mercury and compact fluorescent bulbs,” said Hohn.

“The Lacombe Regional Waste Services Commission remains committed to providing environmentally responsible waste handling solutions,” said LRWSC Commission Chair Mayor Grant Creasey. “The latest equipment purchases will further our environment stewardship goals in a fiscally responsible manner.”

Both pieces of equipment have been ordered, and should be in operation at the Prentiss Landfill Site within the next couple of months.