Penn. Agency Approves Test Burn at Cement Plant

The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection has approved a request by LaFarge North America Cement Co., to conduct a test burn of plastics as a fuel supplement in the company’s cement kilns.

Thomas DiLazaro, the DEP’s Northeast Regional Air Quality Manager, said,

“The department has carefully reviewed this request and is requiring a comprehensive emissions monitoring program as part of this approval,” DiLazaro said. “In addition, DEP reviewed the use of a recyclable material as a fuel and found there is no secondary recycling market for these types of plastic.”

LaFarge submitted the request to DEP the beginning of this year, and proposed to use Types 4, 5, 6 and 7 plastic as a fuel supplement. At that time, DEP also recommended that the company present the details of the proposal to the township and residents.

LaFarge is required to control the amount of plastic used during the test burns and hire an independent consultant to conduct comprehensive air monitoring of the emissions during the test burn.

The emissions will be tested for metals; volatile organic and semi-volatile organic compounds; dioxin and furans; hydrochloric acid; PCBs; hydrocarbon compounds such as benzene, xylene and toluene; nitrogen oxides; sulfur dioxide; and products of incomplete combustion.

The company has indicated they will begin the first phase of the test burn Dec. 3-5, with another test burn tentatively scheduled Dec. 8-10. Air emissions must be monitored during all test burns and DEP Air Quality Program staff will monitor the procedure.

DEP will review the company’s emissions data after the tests and determine if the use of the plastic-derived fuels meets air quality standards. The air emissions report will be provided to the township and available at DEP’s Bethlehem District Office on Bath Pike for public review.

If no significant air quality impact is found following review of the data, LaFarge would be required to submit an air quality plan approval application to formally modify its existing permit.