# Presentation: 051397

## Veolia’s Port Arthur Incinerator, PCB Air Releases, and Alternative Non-Incineration Technology

** **
**EPA Public Hearing - June 19, 2008**
**Neil J. Carman, Ph.D.**
**Sierra Club Lone Star Chapter**

## Polychlorinated Biphenyls: PBTs

**EPA recognizes PCBs as part of a group of extraordinarily harmful substances - PBTs.**
**_x0008_• What are PBTs compared to PCBs?**

## Polychlorinated Biphenyls as “PBTs”

**“****P” means **_**Persistent**_** in the environment, so PCB molecules survive over several decades.**
**“****B” means **_**Bioaccumulative**_** in food chains if released into nature: aquatic & terrestrial.**

## Polychlorinated Biphenyls as “PBTs”

**“****T” means **_**Highly Toxic**_** to living organisms; PCBs produce an myriad of adverse effects.**
**PCBs are hormone disruptors, carcinogens, cause birth defects, and many other adverse health effects in studies put into the Docket.**

## Polychlorinated Biphenyls as “PBTs”

**PCBs are **_**Persistant, Bioaccumulative and Highly Toxic**_** substances, a special class of dangerous chemicals that are causing havoc around the world, not just in Port Arthur.**

## Polychlorinated Biphenyls as “PBTs”

## Slide 7

## Polychlorinated Biphenyls as “PBTs”

**PCBs are **_**global**_** pollutants found worldwide.**
**We already have **_**too many PCBs in nature**_**!**
**We have **_**too many PCBs in our babies and children**_**. Our grandchildren will too!**

## PCBs Lake & River Advisories: Too many PCBs in the US!

**2004:   873 advisories in 38 states & territ.**
**2005:   953 advisories in 38 states & territ.**
**2006: 1,023 advisories in 38 states & territ.      **
**              ****for a 15% increase in two years.**

## PCBs Lake & River Advisories: Too many PCBs in the US!

**2005: 4,652,648 lake acres & 118,094 miles of rivers were contaminated with PCBs.**
**2006: 4,699,936 lake acres & 132,228 miles of rivers were contaminated with PCBs.**
**EPA is not doing enough to stop PCB releases.**

## Other PBTs: Dioxins and Dibenzofurans

**Other PBTs:  **_**Dioxins**_** are polychlorinated benzene compounds similar to PCBs.**
**Other PBTs:  **_**Dibenzofurans**_** are also polychlorinated benzene compounds similar to PCBs and dioxins. **

## PBT Advisories in the US 

**2006: Although there are advisories in the United States for 44 different chemicals, the EPA recognizes that 88% of all US advisories in effect involve just five bioaccumulative chemicals: Mercury, **_**PCBs**_**, **_**Dioxins**_**, Chlordane, and DDT.  Veolia emits **_**PCBs**_** and **_**Dioxins**_** so it’s adding to the problem!**

## PCBs, Dioxins and Dibenzofurans: Polychlorinated Di-Benzenes

## PCBs, Dioxins and Dibenzofurans

**• ****PCB **_**incineration**_** releases unburned **_**PCBs, **_**and creates new **_**PCBs,**_** **_**Dioxins and Dibenzofurans**_** as polychlorinated benzene compounds emitted even by state-of-the-art incinerators such as Veolia’s PA facility.**

## Veolia’s 2006 PCB Air Releases

**Veolia first reported 1,933 pounds of PCB airborne TRI releases in 2006, and revised it.**
**Veolia now reports 2.25 pounds of PCBs in its 2006 airborne TRI releases. Scrutiny role?**
**Has EPA accepted the revised PCB number?**

## Veolia’s 2006 PCB Air Releases

**Has EPA conducted an audit of Veolia’s new PCB estimate? EPA should do an audit.**
**How can EPA verify if Veolia only emitted 2.25 pounds of PCBs into the air in 2006? **
**Does Veolia know how many PCBs it emitted?**

## Veolia’s 2006 PCB Air Releases

**How much is 2.25 pounds of PCBs?**
**2.25 pounds x 453.6 grams/lb = 1,020.6 grams**
**1,020.6 grams x one million micrograms/gram    = **_**1,020,600,000 micrograms of PCBs**_

## Veolia’s 2006 PCB Air Releases

**• **_**1.0206 billion micrograms of PCBs**_** is an exceedingly large quantity of unburned PCBs released, if Veolia is correct.**
**PCBs are highly toxic even on the **_**level of micrograms**_**. Every molecule is a hazard.**

## Veolia’s 2006 PCB Air Releases

**How many more billions of micrograms of toxic PCBs will Veolia release in 2008-09 by burning more PCBs?  Veolia does not know the micrograms it will emit. **
**Any PCBs are too many! **

## Veolia’s 2006 PCB Air Releases

**•  ****Is Veolia correct in calculating its PCBs releases?**
**•  ****How does Veolia measure **_**PCBs**_**?  **_**Dioxins**_**? **_**Dibenzofurans**_**?**

## Veolia’s 2006 PCB Air Releases

**•  ****Veolia does not measure its actual routine stack releases of **_**PCBs**_**,  **_**Dioxins**_**, or **_**Dibenzofurans**_**.**

## Veolia’s 2006 PCB Air Releases

**Veolia’s 2006 PCB air releases are based on fuzzy math estimates, since it can not precisely measure and monitor PCB stack releases or fugitive leaks.**
**•  ****Veolia does not use a **_**PCB Stack CEMS monitor**_** to more precisely measure and track PCB stack air releases on a continuous basis.**

## Veolia’s 2006 PCB Air Releases

**•  ****Veolia has a Carbon Monoxide CEMS to monitor Stack CO levels, but CO CEMS does not measure PCBs, **_**only CO**_**. **
**•  ****EPA allows CO as a “surrogate” in the HW MACT Combustor rules if CO is less than 100 ppm as evidence of good combustion.**

## Veolia’s 2006 PCB Air Releases

**•  ****EPA’s reasoning is flawed to suggest that CO levels less than 100 ppm are more of a crude surrogate for good combustion. **
**•  ****When **_**CO spikes over 100 ppm**_** even for a few minutes, combustion efficiency has dropped and PCB emissions can jump. DRE is poor!**

## Veolia’s 2006 PCB Air Releases

**•  ****Neither EPA nor Veolia can verify that the **_**CO spikes**_** and **_**incinerator malfunctions**_** over 100 ppm do not cause PCBs without measuring the actual PCBs emitted. DRE?**
**•  ****CO spikes under 1-hour may lead to PCB stack emissions at higher rates than normal.**

## Veolia’s 2006 PCB Air Releases

**•  ****How many times has Veolia had high hourly CO spikes over 100 ppm that could cause **_**unburned PCBs to escape**_**, and higher rates of **_**Dioxins and Dibenzofurans**_** to form? DRE?**
**•  ****Veolia’s permit #42450 requires it to run at no higher than 100 ppm one-hour rolling average. When CO spikes, what is the DRE?**

## Veolia’s 2006 PCB Air Releases

**•  ****Veolia’s incinerator records reveal numerous **_**high hourly CO events over 100 ppm**_**. How many PCBs were emitted? Veolia guesses.**
**Veolia even had **_**CO spikes lasting more than one hour**_**, that’s outrageous and unacceptable since it does not protect public health.**

## Veolia’s 2006 PCB Air Releases

**•  ****Veolia’s incinerator records reveal **_**numerous**_** **_**high hourly CO events over 100 ppm**_**.**
**Veolia may have released more PCBs than its estimated **_**2.25 lbs or 1 billion micrograms**_** of PCBs, but Veolia does not know the precise airborne releases of PCBs in 2006. Guesses!**

## Veolia’s 2006 PCB Air Releases

**•  ****Burning PCBs means **_**more PCB air pollution**_**.**
**•  ****Veolia can release PCBs even if it’s not burning them due to **_**fugitive leaks in the storage, transfer and piping system**_**. **
**It’s unconscionable for Veolia to release PCBs from its incinerator stack or as fugitives.**

## PCB Incinerators: hazardous

**Public believes **_**PCB incinerators can not**_** be **_**stringently permitted**_**, **_**regulated**_** and **_**enforced**_** because **_**incinerators**_** are such dangerous devices and will always have toxic emissions.**
**•  ****Toxic emissions include **_**unburned waste**_** such as PCBs and **_**de novo compounds**_** such as new PCBs, dioxins, dibenzofurans, & others.**

## PCB Incinerators: hazardous

**•  ****Incineration is a flawed technology due to **_**fugitive leaks**_** and PCB **_**Stack emissions**_** in  addition to **_**de novo**_** **_**formation**_** of new PCBs, new Dioxins, and new Dibenzofurans.**
**•  ****Toxic emissions include **_**unburned waste**_** such as PCBs and **_**de novo compounds**_** such as new PCBs, dioxins, dibenzofurans, & others.**

## PCB Incinerators: hazardous

**•  ****Incineration is a flawed technology due to **_**malfunctions and accidents**_** that can increase **_**fugitive leaks**_** and PCB **_**Stack emissions**_** in  addition to **_**de novo**_** **_**formation**_** of new PCBs, Dioxins, and Dibenzofurans.**
**•  ****Veolia has had numerous operating problems resulting in **_**59 violations**_** in the last few years and at least **_**70 deviations**_**.**

## Alternative Non-Incineration Technology

**EPA approved the first alternative PCB destruction technology in 1994, Commodore.**
**EPA allows several companies using fully approved, alternative, non-incineration PCB destruction technologies.**

## Alternative Non-Incineration Technology

**Five EPA approved Chemical Dechlorination, Alternative PCB Destruction Technologies.**

## 5 Alternative Non-Incineration Technologies for PCBs

***Environmental Protection Services, WV.**
**Clean Harbors, Tucker, GA.**
**Transformer Disposal Specialists, OK.**
**Clean Harbors, Coffeyville, KS**
**Safety Kleen Oil Recovery, E. Chicago, IN.**
**   ***** allowed to operate in all ten EPA Regions**

## PCBs & Veolia’s Toxic Releases

**Veolia operates a large-scale commercial**
** ****hazardous waste incinerator **
**that, in my opinion, represents the **
**dirtiest toxic tailpipe & smokestack in **
**the Port Arthur area.**

## PCBs & Veolia’s Toxic Releases

**My reason for suggesting how dirty **
**Veolia’s smokestack is in the Port Arthur**
** ****area is due to the **_**highly diverse mixture**_** **
**of **_**extremely hazardous chemicals**_** being **
_**routinely released**_** as a toxic cocktail **
**far worse than any other industrial plants.**

## PCBs

**EPA must not allow PCBs to be imported **
**into Port Arthur or any other community **
**for incineration, and **
**the EPA needs to explore ways **
**to support fully portable, fully approved **
**alternative non-incineration technologies**
** ****into countries like Mexico.**

## PCBs

**PCB incineration is a seriously flawed **
**approach for dealing with PCBs wastes in **
**the 21st century.**
**Any airborne releases of PCBs from **
**incinerators clearly demonstrates why **
**it’s a failed technology.**

## PCBs: Global Pollutants

## Burning PCBs is badly flawed