Uncontaminated wood waste - normally disposed of in landfill - will be converted into electricity under a proposal recommended for strict conditional approval by the Environmental Protection Authority.
The Hazelmere Wood Waste to Energy Plant will be fuelled by about 13,000 tonnes of clean, shredded wood from timber offcuts, shipping pallets, crates and cable reels each year – enough to supply up to 3.5 megawatts of electricity to the grid.
The plant will use pyrolysis technology which heats the shredded wood at high temperatures without oxygen to produce syngas – the gas will then power eight 500 kilowatt gas engines to generate electricity.
The Eastern Metropolitan Regional Council aims to install the plant as part of further development of the existing Hazelmere Recycling Centre. The area is zoned as an industrial site and located on Lakes Road, approximately 14km north east of Perth.
EPA Chairman Dr Paul Vogel said the recommendation for strict conditional approval followed exhaustive and thorough examination, including scientific peer and technical reviews, with a key focus on management of air quality and emissions.
A detailed study of waste to energy facilities internationally, and the science underpinning the technology involved, was undertaken by the EPA and Waste Authority in 2013 and found that state-of-the-art plants could operate within strict international emissions standards.
The technology had to be proven to the satisfaction of the EPA to operate within acceptable emissions standards to safeguard the environment and human health before being recommended.
“As part of efforts to assess the efficacy of the waste technology, and the practical functioning of the plant, scientific trials of a smaller scale version of the proposed technology were conducted, followed by a technical review,” Dr Vogel said.
“The EPA and Waste Authority’s advice to the Minister for Environment clearly outlines that in assessing any waste to energy proposal, the onus is on the proponent to prove the capability of the technology in meeting best practice emissions standards.
“This proposal was also subjected to the full rigour of a Public Environmental Review - our highest level of environmental impact assessment.
“Subsequently the EPA concluded that the proposal could be managed to meet our objectives for Air Quality and Atmospheric Gases, subject to several strict conditions, including a Waste Acceptance Monitoring Plan to ensure only permitted types of waste wood are processed.”
Dr Vogel said that while the plant was proposed as part of an existing recycling centre located within an industrial zone, particular attention to air quality was crucial, given the proximity of residents surrounding the industrial area.
The facility would require a Department of Environment Regulation works approval to construct and a licence to operate, under Part V of the Environmental Protection Act 1986.
The Department would also be responsible for compliance and enforcement to ensure that appropriate emissions levels were met.
The EPA’s report to the Minister for Environment is now open for a two-week public appeal period, closing August 10, 2015. Appeals are administered independently by the Appeals Convenor and can be made at www.appealsconvenor.wa.gov.au
The Minister for Environment will make the final decision.
EPA Report 1554 is available at www.epa.wa.gov.au
Media Contact: Nadia Miraudo 0400 866 450 / Stacey Molloy 0437 861 315 (Fridays)
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