[Mpls] HERC mercury & dioxin emissions

[David Brauer]

The MPCA link I posted does not include measurements of the garbage  
burner's mercury and dioxin pollution, two other critical pollutants  
fans (and citizens) would want to know about.

Publicly available sources exist, though.

Google came up with this 2000 MPCA data on the first page:
http://www.pca.state.mn.us/publications/reports/mercury- 
emissionsreport-0304.pdf

Interesting tidbits:

Hennepin garbage burner mercury emissions
1990: 496 pounds
1995: 45 pounds
2000: 20 pounds

(It's mostly the result of advanced technology developed/purchased  
after the burner violated mercury limits in the late '80s.)

For comparison purposes, Xcel Energy's Riverside plant (which hadn't  
been converted from coal to gas yet), emitted 98 pounds of mercury in  
2000, and Xcel's High Bridge Plant - near potential St. Paul stadium  
sites - emitted 66 pounds. If St. Paul was to be the ballpark site, I  
doubt the High Bridge Plant's existence would be an issue.

Also for comparison: unrecycled fluorescent lamps put about 100 pounds  
of mercury into Minnesota's environment.

However (as is my pattern in this discussion) I concede Justin's point  
on dioxin, because I haven't been able to easily find data on the  
burner's dioxin emissions.

Still, a 2003 state solid waste report from the Minnesota Office of  
Environmental Assistance noted that the same technology employed to cut  
mercury emissions also cuts dioxin releases:  "Nationally, mercury  
emissions have been reduced by 93 percent and dioxin emissions by 99  
percent following facility retrofits."

I will also resort to that oracle of all information - the Mpls-Issues  
list - and reprise a 2002 post from Mpls's own Trash Lady, Solid Waste  
& Recycling Director Susan Young, who wrote:

"The typical home fire burns below 900 - 1,000 degrees, and 850 degrees  
gives
us optimal Dioxin formation in the home burner exhaust.  The Downtown  
HERC
plant, on the other hand, burns at or in excess of 2200 degrees, and
provides complete combustion of organics (with no Dioxin emissions), and
with backup air emissions control and testing for the other stuff."

Good discussion now, and then. If anyone finds the dioxin info, let the  
list know.

David Brauer
Kingfield