Municipal
Maui County Selects Anaergia to Generate Renewable Fuel from Waste
Anaergia Inc., Burlington, Ontario, has announced that the County of Maui Department of Finance and Mayor Alan Arakawa have provided the intent to award the Integrated Waste Conversion and Energy Project (IWCEP) at the Central Maui Landfill in Puunene, Hawaii, to Anaergia Services, the California-based subsidiary of Anaergia Inc.
Anaergia will design, build, own, operate and privately finance the renewable fuel facility that converts Maui’s waste streams, including municipal solid waste (MSW), food waste, sewage sludge, oils and grease, into renewable liquefied natural gas and refuse-derived fuel (RDF). The two renewable fuels may be used for on-site energy generation or locally in Hawaii as a replacement for imported fossil fuels.
In addition to generating cost-effective renewable fuel from local waste streams without the combustion of solid wastes, Anaergia’s solution will divert roughly 85 percent of Maui’s waste from landfill, reduce more than 100,000 tons of greenhouse gases each year and create local permanent jobs, according to the company.
“Living on an island, we are always looking for ways to preserve our [land] and make better use of our natural resources,” Arakawa says. “That is why this IWCEP project is so important. We are looking at reducing waste in our landfill, cutting down the emissions of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, producing a clean biofuel for industrial consumers as well as greatly expanding the recycling of materials in our community.”
“The Integrated Waste Conversion Project by the County of Maui has the potential to be the model of sustainability for North America while enabling significant economic development on the island,” says Arun Sharma, president of Anaergia Services. “We are proud to be selected by the County of Maui and look forward to be[ing] an active and supportive member of the community,”
Steve Watzeck, CEO of Anaergia Inc., indicates that “Maui’s Integrated Waste Conversion and Energy Project is one of the foremost global examples of how a clear client vision and a strong public-private partnership can reduce energy costs, improve the local environment and foster long-term economic growth for the community.”
Anaergia Inc. is a global leader in offering sustainable solutions for the conversion of waste to renewable resources. Through a portfolio of proprietary technological solutions, Anaergia maximizes the generation of renewable energy, clean water and organic fertilizer while increasing diversion of waste from landfill and reducing greenhouse gases for customers across the municipal, industrial, commercial and agricultural sectors.
Through its subsidiaries, including Anaergia Services, Anaergia Asia and UTS Biogastechnick GmbH, Anaergia is invovled in more than 1,600 operational renewable energy projects globally.
Mass Burn
Purdue to Purchase Steam from Lancaster, Pa., WTE Facility
The Lancaster County Solid Waste Management Authority (LCSWMA), Lancaster, Pa., has approved two agreements with Perdue AgriBusiness for the sale of renewable, waste-to-energy (WTE) steam for use at Perdue’s planned soybean processing plant in Conoy Township. The two agreements encompass an Equipment & Facilities Agreement and Utilities Agreement that detail the business arrangement between LCSWMA and Perdue.
Located next to LCSWMA’s 1,200-ton-per-day WTE facility, Perdue’s plant will utilize recycled steam from LCSWMA’s WTE facility in the processing of soybeans. Additionally, Perdue will return the used processing water and steam condensate to LCSWMA, where it will be treated and recycled back into the WTE system.
“Our board of directors approving these agreements is a big step towards the realization of this innovative project,” says Jim Warner, CEO for LCSWMA. “While we have several more months of preparations ahead of us, we’re thrilled to solidify our business arrangement with Perdue. This project will greatly benefit the agricultural community in Lancaster County and bring a trusted, well-known brand to our area.”
Perdue sought a partnership with LCSWMA for utilizing renewable waste-to-energy steam as an environmentally conscious alternative to fossil fuels. The plant will be located on a 57-acre site adjacent to LCSWMA’s WTE facility.
Transportation Fuels
Johnny Rockets Fry Oil to be Converted into Biodiesel
The restaurant chain Johnny Rockets, based in Aliso Viejo, Calif., has partnered with Dar Pro Solutions, Irving, Texas, to recycle its restaurants’ used fry oil into a renewable diesel fuel.
Each year, Johnny Rockets serves about 8 million pounds of fries and 2 million orders of onion rings, all of which use fry oil. Through Dar Pro Solution’s green program, Johnny Rockets’ 29 corporate-owned restaurants recycle nearly 7,200 pounds of used cooking oil per year, per restaurant. The collection and recycling process not only saves and produces energy but also keeps the used product out of waterways.
“Johnny Rockets continually strives for ways to make our restaurants more eco-friendly and leave a lighter footprint on our environment,” says John Fuller, president and CEO. “As an all-American restaurant chain, we are proud to do our part to be socially responsible, and our partnership with Dar Pro Solutions is a great way to give back to our communities and environment.”
Dar Pro Solutions offers safe disposal and sustainable use of fry oil for national restaurant chains, grocery retailers and other food service businesses. The company converts animal fats and recycled greases, as well as plant oils such as soybean oil, into its exclusive biodiesel fuel, called Bio G-3000 Premium Biodiesel fuel. Bio G-3000 can be used in place of diesel fuel without engine modification or performance reduction and is the fastest growing domestically produced alternative fuel, according to the company.
“Renewable energy, or biofuels, is only one way that we contribute to greening of America, but in the recent past it has become the most-talked-about use for our recycled grease,” Bill Morris, sales manager of chain accounts for Dar Pro, states. “Our partnership with Johnny Rockets is a testament to the fact that foodservice organizations are working toward sustainability goals and are adding value to the idea of a sustainable business.”
Dar Pro recently partnered with Valero Energy Corp. in a joint venture to build a green diesel plant, which is designed to produce 9,300 barrels of renewable diesel per day. The plant will make use of the Norco LA Refinery’s pipelines and 7,000 domestic stores to make Diamond Green Diesel available nationwide. Dar Pro says the facility will convert as much as 11 percent of the country’s animal fat and used cooking oil into renewable diesel.
Refuse-Derived Fuel
Pratt Holds Groundbreaking of New Facility
Pratt Industries, a Conyers, Ga.-based paper recycling and packaging company, broke ground on a solid waste transfer station at its corporate headquarters April 25.
“The contract transitions Conyers’ municipal solid waste collection to Pratt’s Recycling Division,” says Myles Cohen, Pratt’s division president. The transfer station also will accept residential and commercial solid waste from other haulers and cities in Georgia, Cohen says.
Recoverable paper entering the facility will be processed by Pratt’s paperboard mill in Conyers. Other materials collected at the facility will be used as feedstock for the paper mill’s on-site waste-to-energy facility.
Transportation Fuels
United Refining Acquires Biodiesel Facility
United Refining Co., headquarterd in Warren, Pa., through its United Biofuels Inc. subsidiary, has acquired a partially completed 50-million-gallon-per-year biodiesel facility in Brooklyn, N.Y.
The purchase is part of the acquisition by its parent company, United Refining, of certain assets of Metro Fuel Oil Corp., Brooklyn, N.Y., and its affiliated companies.
The facility is estimated to become operational in approximately 12 months, and upon completion it is expected to be able to process a variety of feedstocks. When it is completed, it will be one of the largest biodiesel facilities on the East Coast, according to the company.
United Refining Co. operates a 70,000-barrel-per-day refinery in Warren. In addition to its wholesale markets, the company operates 360 Kwik Fill/Red Apple and Country Fair retail gasoline and convenience stores located primarily in western New York and western Pennsylvania.
Refuse-Derived Fuel
Zero Waste Solutions to Open in Massachusetts in 2014
New Bedford Waste Services LLC (NBWS), a sister company of ABC Disposal Service Inc., New Bedford, Mass., and WERC-2 Inc., Pocasset, Mass., have announced plans to build and operate a recycling facility in New Bedford. The new facility will be known as Zero Waste Solutions LLC (ZWS) and is expected to be open by the summer of 2014.
The 90,000-sqare-foot solar-powered facility will be built at Rochester Environmental Park, a municipal solid waste and construction and demolition processing facility and transfer station in Rochester, Mass. The facility will accept municipal solid waste, construction and demolition (C&D) debris, single-stream recyclables, commingled recyclables and source-separated recyclables.
Additionally, the facility will use WERC-2’s process to produce Eco-Tac fuel briquettes, a solid fuel product that burns, handles and stores like high-Btu coal, according to the company, but with significant emissions benefits, such as a greater than 80 percent reduction in sulfur dioxide and mercury and an approximate 20 percent reduction in carbon dioxide. Eco-Tac will be marketed to biomass and coal-fired plants outside Massachusetts.
“By combining the capabilities of our transfer stations and hauling operations with WERC-2’s innovative technologies, we will be able to develop an extremely efficient facility,” says Michael Camara, president of NBWS. “The technologies allow us to process a larger percentage of materials, which can then be recycled and reused. We will be able to recycle as much as 95 percent of the materials accepted at ZWS.”
The new facility will be solar powered primarily with 80,000 square feet of solar panels to be installed on the roof.
In related news, the Camara family, owners of ABC Disposal Service Inc. and NBWS, have acquired the paper and cardboard recycling division of AW Martin Inc., headquartered in New Bedford.
NBWS also has a 1,500-ton-per-day municipal waste transfer station and C&D processing facility in New Bedford, an 890-ton-per-day transfer station in Rochester and a 625-ton-per-day transfer station in Sandwich, Mass.
International
Sita UK, Partners Land Contract in UK
Sita Sembcorp UK, a consortium led by SITA UK, a subsidiary of France’s Suez Environnement, has been selected as the preferred bidder for a resource recovery contract worth from $1.8 billion to $2.14 billion. The contract runs for 30 years with the Merseyside Recycling and Waste Authority in northern England. The other members of the Sita Sembcorp consortium include Sembcorp Utilities UK and I-Environment, a wholly owned subsidiary of Japan’s Itochu Corp.
The contract will manage more than 430,000 metric tons of residual household waste each year from the county of Merseyside and the borough of Halton. The consortium will design, construct, finance and operate two permitted facilities: a rail-loading waste transfer station in Merseyside and a purpose-built energy-from-waste (EfW) facility in Teesside. Both facilities are expected to be operational by 2016.
The rail-loading waste transfer station will be developed at an existing warehouse in Knowsley Industrial Estate. From there, waste will be transported to the 450,000-metric-tons-per-year EfW facility, which will be developed on a rail-linked site in Teesside.
Sita Sembcorp says it expects the EfW facility to generate electricity for 63,000 homes and says it has the potential to provide steam to adjacent business customers. In total, the consortium says it expects more than 90 percent of the contract waste managed will be diverted from landfill and used to produce energy.
“This is great news for Merseyside, for the environment and for new jobs,” says David Palmer-Jones, CEO of SITA UK. “We are delighted to be selected as preferred bidder for this major contract in Merseyside.”
Jean-Louis Chaussade, CEO of Suez Environnement, says, “We are delighted that the Merseyside Recycling and Waste Authority has selected the SITA Sembcorp UK consortium as preferred bidder for this important contract. This new contract fits well with Suez Environnement’s policy to develop new waste recovery facilities and fits with the UK’s government aspiration to reduce the amount of waste going to landfill.”
Legislation and Regulations
Owner of Biodiesel Fuel Company Sentenced to Prison
Jeffrey David Gunselman, the owner of Absolute Fuels LLC, has been sentenced to 188 months in federal prison, fined $175,000 and ordered to pay more than $54.9 million in restitution following his guilty plea in December 2012 to an indictment charging 51 counts of wire fraud, 24 counts of money laundering and four counts of making false statements in violation of the Clean Air Act, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The company was formed in April 2009.
Gunselman also was named as governing person and/or as registered agent for other business entities associated with Absolute Fuels LLC, including Absolute Fuels LLC; Absolute Milling LLC; Ellipse Energy LLC; 21 Investments LLC; and YGOG Holdings LLC. However, the EPA says Gunselman admitted that these entities were solely alter egos of himself, as an individual, as he alone owns, manages, directs and controls each of them and each has no separate and distinct existence from him.
The EPA says Gunselman admitted that from September 2010 to October 2011, he devised a scheme to defraud the EPA by falsely representing that he was in the business of producing biodiesel fuel, yet Gunselman did not have a biodiesel-fuel-producing facility. Instead, Gunselman’s operation consisted of falsely generating renewable fuel credits and selling them to oil companies and brokers. He instructed purchasers to wire payments to a bank account he solely controlled.
From September 2010 to mid-October 2011, Gunselman conducted 51 fraudulent transactions, which were transmitted by wire communications, that represented to the EPA that biodiesel fuel had been produced at Absolute Fuels’ facility in Anton, Texas, when no biodiesel fuel had been produced. This ultimately resulted in Gunselman requesting and receiving payments of about $41.7 million.
During the same time, Gunselman engaged in monetary transactions in criminally derived property by purchasing real and personal property valued at about $12 million with the funds derived from the wire fraud.
The case was investigated by the EPA Criminal Investigation Division and the U.S. Secret Service.
“Today’s sentence is the second significant penalty against an alleged biodiesel producer who in fact produced no fuel at all,” says Cynthia Giles, assistant administrator for EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. “These cases demonstrate that EPA and our law enforcement partners have and will catch criminals who defraud federal programs and the American people by falsely selling renewable fuel credits.”
“I commend the excellent investigative work done by special agents and investigators with EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division and the U.S. Secret Service in this complex fraud case,” says U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña.
Personnel
Renewable Energy from Waste Adds Sales Talent to Team
GIE Media has added Brian Olesinski to its sales team. Olesinski will focus on sales and business development for two publications within the company’s Recycling Today Media Group, Waterways Today and Renewable Energy from Waste.
Olesinski will focus his efforts in the northeastern United States for Renewable Energy from Waste magazine. For Waterways Today magazine, Olesinski will handle accounts nationwide.
“We’re thrilled to add someone with Brian’s talent and experience on our team,” says Group Publisher Jim Keefe. “Brian brings more than a decade of experience in media sales and client service. His experience fits well with our existing team and business focus.”
Olesinski has worked on a range of business-to-business media properties, including Paperboard Packaging, Pit & Quarry and Landscape Management magazines.
“I am looking forward to meeting the companies involved in these essential industries,” says Olesinski. “As Waterways Today and Renewable Energy from Waste are relatively new magazines, I am excited about the opportunities. I am hearing from many people about the need for these magazines and the tremendous business value they are delivering.”
GIE Media is based in Richfield, Ohio, and serves approximately 23 different business-to-business sectors through print magazines, digital and tablet-based magazines, websites, conferences, directories and books.
The privately held firm employs nearly 100 media professionals.
Personnel
GDT Tek Hires Executive Vice President of Mergers and Acquisitions
GDT Tek Inc., Largo, Fla., has announced that Maxine Pierson has joined the company as executive vice president in charge of mergers and acquisitions.
According to GDT Tek, Pierson has a broad depth of experience in both the public and private sectors and was instrumental in introducing the company to its potential acquisition currently generating electricity in the Midwest near the Great Lakes. Pierson also introduced the company to the DOE eXCHANGE, of which GDT Tek is now a member.
Bo Linton, president of GDT Tek, states, “Ms. Pierson is a wonderful person with a positive attitude and incredible drive that gets the job done. We are very pleased that she is on our team in a new and expanded capacity as executive vice president of mergers and acquisitions and we have great expectations that her contributions to GDT Tek will provide us growth and tremendous successes.”
Pierson says, “It is an honor and pleasure for me to join GDT Tek Inc. as executive vice president, and I welcome the challenge. The renewable energy area is so exciting and dynamic and offers numerous unique opportunities for women. I am especially looking forward to fostering our corporate outreach program and addressing my female colleagues in both the public and private energy sectors.”
GDT Tek says its mission is to employ green, clean technologies to produce renewable and sustainable energy.
Pyrolysis
Oregon DEQ Seeks Comments on Permit Renewal for Tire Recycler
The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) is seeking comments on a proposed draft waste tire storage site permit renewal for Reklaim Inc., which operates a tire recycling facility in Boardman, Ore.
Reklaim was first issued a permit March 20, 2008, by the DEQ to operate a waste storage facility. The permit has expired but has been administratively extended because DEQ says it received a timely renewal application.
Reklaim’s original permit allowed the company to take in whole tires for processing. The company currently accepts preshredded, metal-free, tire crumbs in super sacks. No whole scrap tires are being accepted at the present time.
However, as part of its permit renewal request, Reklaim is interested in taking in whole tires for processing. Under the proposed permit, Reklaim would continue to have the ability to receive and store whole passenger tires that would be processed under the DEQ solid waste treatment permit into preshredded tire crumb that would be converted into carbon black, heating oil, steel and mineral oxides using pyrolysis technology.
The DEQ is inviting public comment on the proposed permitting action. During the comment period the public is invited to make comments related to specific conditions within the proposed permit.
Upon issuance, this permit will be effective for five years, expiring Jan. 1, 2018.
Currently, DEQ is developing new rules for conversion technology facilities such as Reklaim’s tire pyrolysis facility. The new rules will establish new performance standards and solid waste permit requirements for facilities that convert waste into chemicals, fuels, products or energy, the DEQ says.
At this time, DEQ says it is delaying action on the Reklaim Inc. treatment facility permit renewal application until new rules are developed. However, DEQ is proceeding with renewal of Reklaim’s solid waste tire storage site permit.
During its first permit term, Reklaim suspended the shredding operation to focus on establishing a viable pyrolysis (thermal processing) operation for the recovery of carbon black and oil products. Reklaim is currently in phase I of a three-phase building process, each phase resulting in an increase in plant capacity. Tires may be shipped to the facility in 30-foot trailers and are likely to remain in the trailer until they are fed to the reclamation process.
Reklaim’s current operating scenario is the purchase of pre-shredded metal-free tire crumb. However, as Reklaim continues to refine and develop its pyrolysis operations, Reklaim says it intends to begin shredding tires. The shredder uses low-speed knives to shred the scrap tires into small pieces. A small amount of water is added to act as a lubricant and heat sink. Adequate shredding capacity will be added in Phase III of construction if it is economically feasible, the company says.
Following the shredding, the material is dried in a fluid-bed vibratory dryer. The dryer is sized to accommodate all three phases of construction.
During Phase I the dryer will be heated by natural gas. By Phase III the dryer will be heated by steam and hot water generated from recovered process heat. The dryer has a baghouse to capture small pieces of fiber and rubber released during shredding and drying.
During Phase I and Phase II, the material collected in the baghouse will be disposed of in an approved landfill. During Phase III the captured material may be returned to the process.
The dried feedstock is conveyed to a weight belt feeder and then pneumatically sent to the thermal processor. A cyclone at the end of the pneumatic conveying line separates the feedstock from the conveying airstream. The air exits the cyclone through a close-weave filter to capture any remaining particles.
Gasification
Waste2Tricity Starts Concept Design Study for WTE Plant in UK
London-based Waste2Tricity (W2T) has started the concept design study for the development of what it says is an advanced waste-to-energy (WTE) plant. Peel Environmental will provide the property solution for the facility, which will convert about 100,000 metric tons per year of feedstock—residual household or commercial and industrial waste—into low-carbon electricity.
The project will use Westinghouse plasma-assisted gasification from Alter NRG to convert waste sourced from several suppliers, including Energy Gap Ltd. Alter NRG is providing a discounted technology license in exchange for an option to take a minority investment.
W2T, in conjunction with its engineer AMEC and consultant Foster Wheeler, also is working with partners to draw up plans for the 13.6-megawatt (MW) plant, which will produce nearly 109,000 MW hours of low-carbon electricity per year, enough to power 24,000 homes. The project will use internal combustion engines, but W2T says it expects to also demonstrate AFC Energy’s alkaline fuel cells as they become commercially available. The equivalent fuel cell plant will export an additional 43 percent of electricity from the same amount of feedstock.
Peter Jones, chairman of W2T says, “We expect this to be the first of many similar programs for the project partners in the U.K. The 100,000-metric-tons-a-year model will meet the localism agenda—using locally derived feedstock to supply electricity to local homes and businesses. We believe there is a potential market in the U.K. for up to 100 units of this size. Once we are able to deploy fuel cells, the output from our plants will increase substantially and be carbon capture-ready, holding out the prospect of carbon negative electricity.”
Myles Kitcher, director of Peel Environmental, says, “We’re pleased to offer Waste2Tricity a property solution and are looking forward to working with them on what is an exciting project for us. As owners of an extensive land portfolio, our technology-neutral approach and flexible business model means that we can back the right technology for the right site.”
Municipal
San Jose, Calif., Businesses Embrace Recycling
Businesses in San José, Calif., boosted their recycling rate from 22 percent to almost 70 percent from July to December 2012. The city credits new collection services for the increase in its recycling rate.
The new waste collection services, which began July 1, 2012, provide a two-container wet/dry sort for businesses. Wet items include organics such as food waste, used napkins, paper plates and landscape trimmings. Dry items include glass, paper, plastics, cardboard and scrap metals. Waste collection also changed to a single hauler system under franchise with the city. Previously, San José’s 8,000 businesses selected and negotiated their own garbage and recycling services among more than 20 city-approved haulers.
Michael Miller of San José’s Fairmont Hotel says, “The two-container, wet/dry system was quite easy to implement, and we are pleased by how committed and supportive our staff is of this most important initiative. As a result, we are realizing cost savings and proudly increasing the amount we recycle.”
Similarly, Sharon Tolaio, U.S. facilities manager for semiconductor licensing company ARM, says she is pleased with the company’s participation. “At our office in San José, we recycle paper, cans and plastics, and we collect all of our wet waste for composting. This activity has significantly decreased the amount of trash we send to landfill.”
According to San José Councilman Sam Liccardo, the city is on track to achieve an 80 percent waste diversion rate by 2014. “That’s good news for everyone because this helps extend the life of our landfills and reduces associated taxpayer costs, which can be significant,” he says. “With a single, streamlined collection service we have reduced the number of garbage trucks driving through busy business districts. These are among the steps that help move San José towards a sustainable future.”
In its Green Vision, the San José Council has set a goal to divert 100 percent of its waste from landfills and convert waste to energy by 2022.
In 2011, the city conducted a competitive bid process, bringing in Republic Services and Zero Waste Energy Development (ZWED) to collaborate on developing services and infrastructure that would escalate the business community’s rate of recycling and reduce carbon output.
To process the increased volume of material from businesses, Republic expanded its San José material recovery facility to an 80,000-square-foot, multistream processing center capable of sorting 400,000 tons of mixed wet and dry materials every year. The facility stands as the largest recycling facility in the world, according to the city.
“Our facility can recover a high percentage of the incoming waste,” says Republic Bay Area Municipal Relationship Manager Gil Cheso. “And we minimize our carbon output by using compressed natural gas in all of our collection vehicles. We also have plans to use alternative energy sources at our facility. We’re committed to having the most sustainable operations possible.”
ZWED’s facility addresses the waste-to-energy component of the city’s Green Vision. ZWED is currently constructing the first commercial scale dry waste digester facility in North America in the city. It will take the organic stream generated by businesses and convert it to biogas. The facility is anticipated to be operational in early 2014.
Kerrie Romanow, the city’s environmental services director, says she is pleased with the early results of the new service. “The rapid increase in the business community’s recycling rate reflects the success of Republic’s operations and shows that our businesses are effectively participating.”
International
Western Australia EPA Recommends Approval of WTE Project
New Energy Corp., Pilbara, Australia, has welcomed the Western Australian Environmental Protection Authority’s (EPA) recommendation to approve the company’s Port Hedland Waste-to-Energy project.
New Energy says the project is an Australian first and will convert about 100,000 metric tons of waste per year into a clean and renewable energy source.
At full capacity, the Port Hedland Waste-to-Energy Project, which uses technology developed in Western Australia, could produce enough energy to power the equivalent of 21,000 homes in Pilbara, the company adds.
The EPA has recommended the project be approved by the Western Australia Minister for Environment after it was considered at the highest level of assessment through a Public Environmental Review (PER).
EPA’s decision is open to public appeal for a two-week period before the minister makes a final determination on the project.
New Energy Chairman Enzo Gullotti says a comprehensive PER submission, supported by community consultation, had contributed to the EPA’s decision.
“We are passionate about delivering our waste-to-energy solution and providing a world class environmental outcome for the Pilbara,” Gullotti says. “The delivery of this project will ensure that recycling initiatives can be realized on a large scale, landfill diversion rates will be among the highest in Western Australia and clean renewable power generation is established.”
So far in 2013 New Energy has submitted a PER for a proposed facility in Rockingham, Australia; entered into Memorandums of Understanding to develop similar-sized projects in Victoria and New South Wales; and continued the company’s international expansion plans.
Company News
Proctor & Gamble Achieves Zero Manufacturing Waste at 45 Sites Worldwide
The consumer products company Procter & Gamble (P&G), headquartered in Cincinnati, has announced that 45 of its facilities have achieved zero manufacturing waste to landfill, marking a major step toward P&G’s long-term vision of sending no manufacturing and consumer waste to landfills.
According to a company news release, over the past five years P&G’s work to find worth in waste has created more than $1 billion in value for the company.
Steve Owens, a member of P&G’s Sustainability and Technical Expert Advisory Panel, says, “The company’s zero manufacturing waste initiative is setting a standard for others to follow.”
“We have a vision for the future, where plants are powered by renewable energy, products are made from recycled and renewable materials and resources are conserved,” says Bob McDonald, president of P&G. “Changing the way we see waste as a company has brought us one step closer to this goal at 45 sites worldwide.”
P&G says that since announcing its first zero manufacturing waste to landfill site in Budapest in 2007, the company has pledged to work toward zero consumer and manufacturing waste worldwide. Through its quality assurance, packaging reduction, compaction and recycling efforts, P&G says it now ensures that 99 percent of all materials entering its plants leave as finished product or are recycled, reused or converted into energy.
In Mexico, the company converted paper sludge from a Charmin toilet tissue plant into low-cost roof tiles used to build homes. At a U.S. Pampers site, scrap from the wipe manufacturing process is converted to upholstery filling. In the United Kingdom, waste created in the production of Gillette shaving foam is composted, then used to grow turf for commercial uses.
