Agenda - Council - 11/25/1980 - Laserfiche WebLink

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- 28- compost materials are not available to satisfy market demand· Market demand is now being satisfied by a somewhat nonrenew- able black dirt resource. A recent MPCA study (1979) has iden- tified over 250 individual markets in the Seven-County Area. Other Materials Currently the market situation for tree waste products is very good and improving, wood chip boilers and pelletizing plants provide a more than adequate demand for the higher-quality chips less than six inches in length. The market for longer chips of lower quality produced from brush chippers is less certain. ~owever, some of the newer wood chip boilers appar- ently can utilize brush chips effectively. The market for tires is uncertain. Experiments are continuing to determine the suitability of shredded tires as an alterna- tive fuel. There are currently few viable markets for waste plastics. 2. POTENTIAL ENERGY MARKETS In a study conducted by Hennepin County (1979), several markets for refuse-derived energy have been identified. These markets are shown in Table 1. This table shows the size of the market in tons of waste per day, and a preliminary estimate of feasibility. Prob- ably the best potential market for steam in the Twin Cities is the Champion International plant in the Midway district of St. Paul. Champion International is a large consumer of steam and would be a good candidate for a waterwall cumbustion system· If all of these promising markets listed were developed, approxi- mately 3,210 tons per day of refuse would be burned to generate steam. However, the seasonal changes in refuse generation, variations in operating costs for different facilities, and the need for dependable capacity (a way to dispose of solid wastes when, for any reason, a resource and energy facility is out of service) complicate the alternatives that may be considered. CONCLUSIONS Although secondary materials markets for newsprint, ferrous and aluminum have experienced wide price fluctuations, all materials have generally increased in price over the long run. Ali mate- rials are subject to price variations that parallel the trend of the national economy. Barring any unforeseen circumstances, t~e secondary materials market demand, other than the near-saturated corrugated market, could sustain a greater supply than is cur- rently being recovered from existing programs. Although a preliminary survey by MPCA has indicated favorable markets for compost products, the actual demand and price for this type of organic secondary material is unknown and further analysis is necessary.