Coalition for Responsible Waste Incineration

Technical Information

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CONTINUOUS EMISSIONS MONITORING SERVES AS PUBLIC'S ENVIRONMENTAL "INSURANCE"
With continuous emissions monitoring by properly calibrated equipment, the public can be sure that hazardous waste incinerators operate within governmental regulations.

COMMON QUESTIONS ASKED ABOUT DIOXIN
A series of commonly asked questions about dioxins and their answers.

GLOSSARY OF TERMS
(What are the Terms of Art For Incineration?) A list of environmental and technical terms often used in literature.

WHAT IS A HAZARDOUS WASTE?
Government regulations have set up intricate guidelines to answer this question. Regulations are written based on physical and chemical properties, environmental behavior and physiological effects, all of which determine the degree of hazard of each waste material.

THE ROLE OF INCINERATION IN INTEGRATED WASTE MANAGEMENT - THE TOTAL STORY
The proper management of waste generated by our society is a challenge.  It is generally agreed that "Integrated Waste Management" (source reduction, recycling, treatments, and disposal) is the approach that we should take when managing our wastes.  While we can reduce the amopunt of waste discarded through source reduction and recycling, it is unrealistic to expect the elimination of all wastes.  We still have to develop methods and stradegies to handle the remaining waste.

A BURNING NEED: " PUBLIC PERCEPTION VERSUS REALITY"
The community has many opportunities to participate in the permitting process, and its perception of an operation will help determine whether the company's efforts are successful. Sharing information, listening to the concerns and views of others, and being accessible to the community will go a long way toward establishing trust that is so badly needed

CRWI PLAYS LEAD ROLE IN COMBUSTION RESEARCH
Ongoing dialogue among CRWI's industry and academic membership, as well as the federal government, is vital to focusing research efforts on real industry needs and ensuring that resulting technological solutions are applicable to real world incineration systems.

SULFUR DIOXIDE REMOVAL FROM FLUE GASES
Sulfur is oxidized to sulfur dioxide, with trace amounts of sulfur trioxide in the combustion process. The oxides of sulfur found in flue gases are easily scrubbed.

HAZARDOUS WASTE MANAGEMENT IN THE UNITED STATES
The hazardous waste management system in the United States is governed by several laws, more than 1200 pages of Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulations, and numerous guidance and policy documents. In addition, most states have authorized hazardous waste management systems. The primary Federal regulations effecting hazardous waste and how those regulations effect the hazardous waste industry are discussed.

SAFELY TRANSPORTING HAZARDOUS WASTE
With such extensive regulations and industry programs in place, hazardous material/waste transportation safety has far surpassed overall vehicle safety records. Efforts to improve the safety of shipping hazardous materials have seen a steady decrease in the number of incidents involving trucks over the last 10 years.

CURRENT STATUS OF THE SCIENCE OF MERCURY IN THE ENVIRONMENT
EPA and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry currently have a disagreement over safe levels of human exposure to mercury. This paper explores the sources of that disagreement and identifies sources of mercury emissions to the environment.

A BRIEF HISTORY OF STARTUP, SHUTDOWN, AND MALFUNCTION PLANS
EPA has long recognized that startup, shutdown, and malfunction plans are different from normal operations. This paper explores the history of these plans using guidance memos and Federal Register notices to develop potential lession on developing these plans for HWC.

FURNACES, BOILERS AND INCINERATORS
(What are the Uses of Furnaces, Boilers and Incinerators?) (What is Material Recovery? Heat Recovery? Incineration?) It is important to distinguish the primary purposes of different units and the types of materials or wastes being burned to encourage uses of most environmentally preferable management alternatives. The primary functions of boilers, furnaces, and incinerators are significantly different.

CRWI PARTICIPATES IN CERTIFICATION PROGRAM FOR HAZARDOUS WASTE INCINERATOR OPERATORS
CRWI supports the American Society of Mechanical Engineers operator certification program

PARTICULATE EMISSIONS FROM HAZARDOUS WASTE INCINERATORS
The exhaust stack from a hazardous waste incinerator is only one of many sources that emit particulates to the environment. Consequently, specific regulations apply to the incinerator emissions to ensure that the ambient air concentrations in the community are safe.

EMISSIONS FROM INCINERATION
Some Important Questions and Answers

INCINERATION AND THE COMBUSTION PROCESS
Incineration is one of the best methods of reducing the volume and hazard of organic hazardous wastes. Through incineration, more than 90 percent of the volume of the original waste is typically reduced. Matter is neither created nor destroyed in an incinerator. Individual constituents are converted to more stable forms that are less hazardous to human health and the environment.

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