New Sources, New Requirements, New Challenges: Air Quality and New Waste-to-Energy Capacity

Renewed interest in waste-to-energy (WTE) has spurred a number of plans for facility expansions, retrofits and in several cases, new facilities. Complex federal and state regulations governing stationary air pollution sources challenge projects to develop and implement a compliance strategy that meets current and emerging regulatory requirements and which consists of commercially available and technically feasible control technologies, while managing the financial viability of the project. Past experience in the WTE industry is indicative of current challenges, and the deliberate development of WTE in the United States over the last 15 years now creates challenges when technologies developed and implemented elsewhere must be considered. One example is control of nitrogen oxides. Individual projects are subject to regulatory requirements differently, with net emissions increases, location and other attributes establishing the basis for regulatory compliance. This paper will discuss the complex New Source Review permitting requirements that typically apply to WTE projects, review commercially available air pollution control technologies, and discuss, through the use of a case study, the decision-making process used to develop the air pollution control strategy for the York County Resource Recovery Center expansion, one recent development of new WTE capacity in the United States.