«•
resource recovery plant implementation
               guides for
           municipal officials:
            planning one) overview
              technologies risks
           ond controcts
             accounting format
           financing  procurement
              further assistance

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     This publication (SW-157.3)  contains updated sections of an earlier
study by Steven J.  Levy, Markets  and Technology for Recovery Energy from
Solid Waste.  Environmental  Protection Publication SW-130.  Washington, U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency,  1974.  31  p.

     This publication (SW-157.3)  is part of a  special series of reports
prepared by the U.S.  Environmental  Protection  Agency's Office of Solid
Waste Management Program.   These  reports are designed to assist municipal
officials in the planning  and implementation of processing plants to
recover resources from mixed municipal solid waste.

     The title of this series is  Resource Recovery Plant Implementaion:
Guides for Municipal  Officials.   The parts  of  the series are as follows:

     1.  Planning and Overview (SW-157.1) (Order  No.  533)
     2.  Technologies (SW-157.2)  (Order  No.  550)
     3.  Markets (SW-157.3)   (Order  No.  499)
     4.  Financing  (SW-157.4) (Order No.  471)
     5.  Procurement (SW-157.5) (Order No.  495)
     6.  Accounting Format (SW-157.6)  (Order No.  493)
     7.  Risks and  Contracts (SW-157.7J  (Order  No.  496)
     8.  Further Assistance (SW-157.8)  (Order  No.  470)

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Resource Recovery Plant Implementation:
    Guides for Municipal  Officials
                MARKETS
  This guide (SW-157.3)  was compile^
 by Yvonne M.  Garbe and  Stewer J
 U.S. Environmental  Protection Agency
                 1979

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                              2d Printing
     An environmental protection publication (SW-157.3) in the solid waste
management series.  Mention of commercial products does not constitute
endorsement by the U.S. Government.  Editing and technical content of
this report were the responsibilities of the Resource Recovery Division
of the Office of Solid Waste Management Programs.

     Single copies of this publication are available from Solid Waste
Management Information Materials Distribution, U.S. Environmental  Protection
Agency, Cincinnati, Ohio  45268.

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                             CONTENTS
                                                              Page
Introduction	  1
Energy Products and Markets	  1
Steam and Electricity	  7
Analysis and Conclusions	 11
Material s Products and Markets	 14
Marketi ng Recovered Materi al s	 32
Appendix 1	  39
Appendix 2	  42
References	  46

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                 MARKETS  FOR MATERIALS AND  ENERGY  RECOVERED

                         FROM MUNICIPAL SOLID WASTE

 By Yvonne  M.  Garbe and Steven J. Levy*


     Several materials and a variety of different energy products can
potentially be recovered from municipal  solid waste and sold to produce
revenue.  The recoverable forms of energy include solid, liquid, and
gaseous fuels as well as steam and electricity.  The materials that are
considered to be the primary recovery candidates are paper, ferrous
metals, glass, and aluminum.

     This report discusses the markets  for these energy and material
products, focusing on those characteristics that affect marketability.
Discussed are descriptions and locations  of potential  markets, the
product quality required by those markets,  and  approximate market prices.
The report then addresses marketing techniques, including how to conduct
a market research and obtain a purchase agreement.

     Perhaps the paramount message which  should flow from this document
is this:  Markets First:   specifications  determine technology.   Market
availability and specifications determine not only the basic components
of a recovery system, but also the specific manner in  which those components
are designed and operated.

                        ENERGY PRODUCTS AND MARKETS
     Resource recovery technologies  under development in the United
States today can generate a variety  of different energy products from
solid waste.  Solid, liquid, and gaseous fuels  are possible products, as
well as steam and electricity.   Not  all  of these options have been
developed to the point where a  municipality can consider them for
immediate implementation.  (For a further discussion as to which options
are presently available,  see the Technology Guide section of this series.)
The energy recovery system that should be employed in any particular
community depends upon the market outlets available for their products.

     This section discusses the characteristics of various energy products,
especially those characteristics that affect product marketability.  It
also discusses potential  markets for energy products, and the factors
that influence their willingness to  buy.  Solid, liquid, and gaseous
fuels are considered first, then steam and electricity.  Finally, the
various energy products are compared.
     *Ms. Garbe is a Project Engineer and Mr, Levy is the Senior Staff
 Engineer with the Resource Recovery Division, Office of Solid Waste
 Management Programs, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

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                                   FUEL
     Fuels can be produced from solid waste- using a number of technologies
currently under development.  Either heavy duty shredders, or pulpers,
operating in conjunction with material classifiers, can produce solid
fuels, while pyrolysis reactors can produce liquid and gaseous fuels.
These fuels may be burned in furnaces either by themselves or in conjuntion
with their fossil fuel counterparts:  coal, petroleum, and natural gas.
The usefulness of marketability of these waste-derived fuels depend on
their characteristics.

                           Fuel Characteristics
     Fuels derived from municipal solid waste will have physical and
chemical properties different from those of conventional fuels and,
therefore, will have different handling and combustion characteristics.

     There are a number of general characteristics that determine the
marketability of fuels derived from solid waste whether they are solid,
liquid, or gaseous.  These include the following.

     Quantity of fuel produced.  Enough of the product must be available
to justify any expenses that the user may incur in modifying his facility
to accept this new fuel source.  Naturally, the higher the cost of plant
modification, the greater the minimum quantity of fuel will be required.
This reduces the alternatives available to communities of 50,000 people
or less.  These communities may want to investigate using small incinerators
with heat recovery systems.

     Heat value.  The heat value of each fuel must be high enough to
maintain boiler or furnace efficiency.  For example, tests using gaseous
fuels with heat values of 300 British Thermal Units (Btu)/cu.ft. and
above have been successful.  Below this level, they may require speical
consideration, although some types of industrial operations have used
gaseous fuels with heat values as low as 90 to 100 Btu/cu.ft.  Also, the
lower the heat value, the higher the per unit cost to transport, store,
and handle the greater quantity of fuels required.

     Supply reliability.  An adequate and continuing supply of the fuel
increases its value because the user does not need to maintain standby
equipment or fuel.

     Quality.  The better the product, in terms of handling, stability,
uniformity, good burnout, greater Btu value, etc., the more it is worth
because the customer's cost to use the product is reduced.

     Price.  The price of the fuel will probably be approximately equivalent
(on the basis of heat value produced) to the price of the fossil fuel it
replaces.  In determining equivalence, adjustments must be made for
additional costs incurred in its use.

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                                Solid Fuel
     Solid waste fuels are produced by separating the light combustible
fraction of shredded or pulped solid waste from the heavier noncombustible
portion.  The light fraction will probably represent 70 to 80 percent  of
the incoming solid waste, and may be the primary contributor of product
revenue.

     Refuse derived solid fuels can be used as a supplement to coal in
suspension-fired utility boilers.  They are also being considered for
use in conjunction with oil-fired units as a fuel  supplement in cement
kilns.  These fuels can be prepared as a fine powder, light fluff,
dewatered wet pulp, or as a densified pellet or cubbette.   Heat values
are typically 4500 to 6500 Btu per Ib (as received)  and the fuel may
have value of $.30 to $2.00 per million Btu depending on the quality of
the product, the user's expected handling costs, and the availability of
alternative fuels.  Some factors that influence the  marketability of
these solid fuels are:

     Particle size.  Ideally, particles must be small  enough to permit
complete combustion when burned in suspension.   However, practical size
ranges vary with the type of unit used to burn the fuel.  A general  rule
of thumb has been a one-inch nominal  (90 percent less  than one inch)
particle size.   Small  particle size is particularly  important if there
are no burnout grates  at the base of the combustion  chamber.

     Residue content.   Residue should be kept to a minimum in order to
prevent erosion of the furnace walls  and the fuel  firing system.   Excessive
residue may restrict the re-sale value of the coal ash.   Air classifiers
and magnetic separators can be used to remove noncombustible materials
to reduce the ash content of the combustible fraction  of the fuel.
Typically, ash  content amounts to about 20 percent by  weight.   This  can
cause a five fold increase in ash per unit of heat delivered,  since
better grades of coal  average about 10 percent ash and have heating
values two and  one-half times that of the refuse derived fuel.

     Moisture content.  Moisture content will  affect the heat value  of
the fuel.  The  combustion efficiency of the unit is  reduced as  the
moisture content is increased.   This  is particularly important  in
preparing fuel  by the  wet pulping method because the fuel  product  must
be dewatered to an acceptable moisture content.   Dry separation processes
generally produce a fuel  containing 25 to 30 percent moisture content
and having a 4500 to 6500 Btu/lb.  heat value.   The wet pulping  method
produces a fuel  containing 50 percent moisture and has a 3500 Btu/lb.
heat value.

     Solid fuels may also be formed into pellets in  order  to improve the
fuel's handling characteristics.   Also, by forming pellets this fuel may
be made suitable .for use in older stoker-fired units which would not be
able to use a finely divided fuel.   The use of pellets,  however, has not
yet been demonstrated  on a large scale.

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                               Liquid Fuels


     One energy recovery technology under development in San Diego,
California, produces a heavy, oil-like liquid fuel that can be used as
a supplement to No. 6 fuel oil in large industrial or utility boilers.
Factors which will influence its marketability include the following.

     Volumetric heating value.  The volumetric heat value (Btu per
gallon) influences the cost of transporting and storing the fuel.  The
fuel has about 75 percent of the heat value of No. 6 fuel oil, on a
volumetric basis.

     Chemical stability.  If the fuel undergoes chemical change, storage
time may be restricted.

     Special handling problems.  The need to maintain separate storage
and firing systems for the solid waste fuel, and to purge the firing
systems after the fuel has burned, places an extra burden on the user
and may diminish the fuel's value.

                               Gaseous Fuel
     Most gaseous fuels produced from solid waste have a low heating
value  (100-500 Btu  per cu ft) as compared to natural gas (1000 Btu/cu
ft) because  they contain significant quantities of carbon dioxide and,
in some systems, nitrogen.  The distrance they can be transported is
limited due  to cost of compressing and pumping the gas during transit.
As the fuel  value goes down this cost becomes prohibitive.  Distances
beyond 2 to  3 miles may be uneconomical for transporting gases having
heat values  of 300  per cu ft or less.  Such fuels would probably have to
be converted to steam or electricity on site where they are produced.

                             Markets for Fuels
      The best markets  for  solid waste  fuels would be  large utility or
 industrial  users  who could replace  20  to  30 percent or more of their
 conventional  fuels  with  solid waste fuel.

      Steam  electric power  plants, industrial  operations, and central
 heating/cooling plants represent  the most likely market outlets for
 solid waste fuels.

                         Steam Electric Power  Plants

      Electric utilities  operating steam-electric plants fired by fossil
 fuels are the most  promising market because they use  very large quantities
 of fuel  and are often  located close to the urban area where the solid

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waste is generated.  Also, the quasi-public structure of the electric
utility tends to be more conscious of community problems and, in  some
cases, more receptive to accepting the present uncertainties associated
with using these fuels.  For instance, a utility may gain approval of a
new power plant site more easily if it is part of a solid waste energy
recovery program.

     Economic gain is a minor factor influencing a utility to use solid
waste fuels because savings, if any, would amount to only a small fraction
of the utility's total fuel costs and because savings in the cost of a
solid waste fuel are generally passed on to the utility's customers
through an automatic fuel price adjustment clause.  However, economic
gain in the form of capital investment savings and generating capacity
credits can be considerable and may result when the utility agrees to
purchase steam and/or electric energy.

     Solid fuel can be burned only in boilers equipped to handle the
residue.  To date burning has occurred only on a demonstration basis and
only in plants that were initially designed to burn coal.  Oil  fired
plants may not have suitable ash handling capability or air pollution
control facilities suitable for handling burning of solid fuel.   Waste
burning in such plants has not been demonstrated.   Recent orders from
the Federal Energy Administration require many oil and gas  fueled units
that are capable of burning coal to convert to coal.   This  tends to
expand market opportunities for waste firing.

     In establishing a solid waste fuel  market with an electric  utility
it is necessary to determine whether the market will  be capable  of using
the fuel for the entire projected useful life of the waste  processing
plant.  This is because as plants become older they are replaced by more
efficient newer plants, and their load factors (the amount  of use they
receive) tend to decline.

     The capacity of a power plant to handle solid waste fuel  will be a
function of its load factor as well as the percentage of solid waste
fuel that can be handled safely without damaging the plant  or otherwise
affecting its operation.  For example, a 200 megawatt boiler having a
load factor of 60 percent and a heat rate of 11,200 Btu/kwhr retrofitted
to burn 10 percent solid waste derived fuel  could  handle about 500 tons
of solid waste per day.  A nomograph to calculate  capacities of  various
boilers to handle solid waste fuel  is included in  Appendix  I.

     Utilities project load factors for all  of their units  using a set
of assumptions such as future price of fossil  fuels,  customer demand,
planned nuclear construction, projected environmental  constraints, etc.
These projections are understandably subject to a  great deal  of  uncertainty.
If however, a utility company projects that the economic utilization of
the facility which will burn solid waste is going  to decline then it may
mean that the price the utility will pay for the fuel  will  decline sharply,
or that the market might disappear completely.

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                           Industrial Operations


     Many industrial operations are potential markets for fuel produced
from solid waste.  Cement plants, paper mills, steel mills, and lime
plants, for instance use vast amounts of fuel.  To date most of these
industrial markets have not been investigated in detail and there is
virtually no experience in their burning of municipal waste derived
fuel.

     Feasibility studies are currently examining the possibility of
using solid waste as a fuel in cement manufacturing kilns and a demonstration
project is planned in Palmer Township, Pennsylvania, in 1977.  The solid
waste would supplement the coal or other fuel being used, and any ash
remaining would be incorporated into the final cement-product.  Research
is needed on any adverse impacts on cement quality that may result from
the use of a waste derived fuel.

     Cement kilns require about 8 million Btu of fuel per ton of cement
produced.  Plants range in capacity from 1,000 to over 3,000 tons or
more cement per day.  Therefore, using solid waste as 20 percent of the
fuel load, a small plant could consume the fuel produced from 400 tons
of solid waste per day.

     A typical paperboard mill using about 25,000 pounds of steam per
ton of boxboard at the rate of 360 tons of boxboard per day would require
400,000 pounds of steam per hour.  This is equivalent to an energy yield
of 1,200 tons of solid waste per day based on 20 percent solid waste
fuel input.

     Most paper mills currently burn their own bark and wood waste in
boilers to supplement conventional fuels.  Although this reduces the
capacity of this market for solid waste fuels, it should ease the marketing
task because the industry is already accustomed to burning waste fuels.

                               Market Value


     Current fossil fuel prices generally range from around $.30 per
million Btu on older long term coal or natural gas contracts to $2.00
per million Btu for spot purchases of low sulfur coal or oil.  The value
of the solid waste fuel will be a function of the cost of the fuel it is
replacing and the increased costs associated with the use of the fuel.

     Because of the wide range in prices being paid for fossil fuel it
is wise to examine all potential fuel markets before selecting a particular
process or end user.

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                           STEAM AND ELECTRICITY
     Steam can be converted to other forms of energy:  (1) its heat can
be used directly, for example, to heat buildings in a district heating
system; (2) it can be converted mechanically into electricity by the use
of steam turbines, which is what happens in a steam-electric power
plant;  or (3) for steam to provide motive force for industrial operations,
such as to drive machinery or to operate a compressing unit to produce
chilled water in a district cooling system.

                           Steam Characteristics
     Steam temperature requirements generally range from 250 F to 1,050 F
with pressures ranging from 150 pounds per square inch (psi) to 3,500 psi.
The strength of the materials used to construct the steam-generating
system is dictated by the temperature and pressure.   In electric power
plants the greatest efficiency is achieved at the highest temperatures
and pressures.  In steam distribution systems,  however temperatures are
kept as low as possible to minimize heat loss in the delivery system and
to minimize the possiblity of bursting pipes.

     In systems that use solid waste as the sole or primary fuel, the
steam is usually produced at 600 psi or less in order to minimize slagging
and corrosion of the boiler tubes.   The steam can be processed further
in separate units to bring it to the temperature and pressure at which
it is needed.

                           Market Considerations
     Steam can be marketed in two  ways:   as  a  guaranteed  supply,  or as
a limited supply that requires the user  to have  a  backup  system.   In the
first case, the producer (a municipality, private  company,  or  public
authority) provides a reliable supply  and assumes  the  responsibility of
providing steam from other sources (e.g., a  fossil  fuel package boiler)
if there is an interruption in the production  of steam using solid
waste.  In the second case, the customer buys  all  of the  steam the
producer can generate using solid  waste,  but the customer carries the
burden of producing additional  steam in  the  event  that this supply is
interrupted or is not adequate to  meet its demand.  In this case, the
steam's value to the customer is lower,  but  the  steam  producer assumes
less risk and responsibility.

     To be marketable, steam must  meet the specific needs of the  user.
Some factors that affect steam marketability are:

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     Proximity to Customer.  The steam-generating facility must be close
enough to serve the steam market economically.  Steam can be transported
economically only about 2 miles; and in congested areas expensive
pipeline installation can be expensive and other problems may further
restrict this distance.

     Value.  The price at which the steam is delivered must be competitive
with the costs of the customers' alternate energy sources.

     Availability of Solid Waste.  The municipality must insure that it
has enough waste to meet its steam output commitments.

     Quantity.  The amount of steam supplied must be compatible with the
customer's needs.  If peak loadings cannot be supplied entirely by
burning solid waste, then standby, fossil-fuel-fired boilers will be
needed.

     Operating Schedule.  The steam-producing facility must be set up on
an operating basis that satisfies the operating schedule of the steam
customer.

     Reliability.  The system must include sufficient backup facilities
to meet the level of reliability of supply agreed upon.  This may include
contingency plans to burn fossil fuels when the solid waste unit is out
of service or when strikes or weather prevents solid waste from reaching
the plant.  The cost of building and operating these facilities must be
considered in the economic evaluation of the system.

     Excess Steam.  The facility must be designed to serve the community's
disposal needs, even if there is an interruption to the steam market.
Condensing units or a  backup sanitary landfill may be necessary.

     Timing.  The steam must be available when it is needed.  Unanticipated
delays  in  construction of  the facility could force a steam customer to
find another  source of steam.

                             Markets for Steam
      Most metropolitan areas  have  one  or more major outlets for steam.
 Yet,  despite the fact that proven  technology exists for generating steam
 from  municipal  solid waste, constraints on  its  use have made the marketing
 of steam difficult in some cases.   Several  of these are discussed
 below.

                     District  Heating and Cooling Systems


      There are  about 450 commercial and campus  district steam heating
 systems operating in this country, a number of  which also distribute

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chilled water for cooling buildings during warm weather.  A number of
cities have large steam systems serving their central business or
industrial areas.

     In these systems, steam is distributed at a low pressure, generally
about 250 psi, which can be provided easily by a solid waste disposal
facility.  Unlike the demand for electricity, which has certain peak
periods, steam demand is generally more constant throughout the day and
from day to day.  Seasonal variations can be significant, but if the
utility also distributes chilled water it can operate its chilling plant
with a steam-driven turbine.  In any event,  the demand for steam can be
sufficient to accomodate a constant amount of steam produced in an
energy recovery plant during most, if not all,  of the year.

     Seasonal variations in energy demand can also be balanced by contracting
separately for steam and chilled water.   For example, in an  area where
peak demand occurs in the summer, a utility  can serve a greater number
of winter (steam) customers than summer (chilled water)  customers.
Also, customers with their own  backup systems (such as existing buildings
which were later tied into the  pipeline)  can be put on an interruptable
contract to help balance loads.

     Because steam usually cannot be transported economically  for more
than about 2 miles, the solid waste plant must  be located close to  the
steam users; usually this will  mean in or near  the central part of the
city.  Although land costs may  be higher,  solid waste hauling  costs will
probably be reduced, because of the proximity of the plant to  the waste
generators.

     In a city where no steam distribution network exists, the municipality
can consider installing a complete solid  waste  steam-generating incinerator
and a steam distribution network.   To minimize  the costs,  this might  be
tied to a major urban renewal project or  to  the construction of a large
industrial park.  Although the  municipality  might then be able to sell
the steam at a much higher price,  it would also be responsible for  a
much higher capital investment  because, being the only source  of supply
for its customers, it would also have to  assume the responsibility  for
total reliability.  A backup system (which might add 10  to 20  percent to
the total system costs) would be needed to provide steam when  the steam
generator was out of service or if there  were an interruption  in the
delivery of refuse to the facility.

     Two new systems which are  still  undergoing modifications  to improve
their operations will soon produce steam  for utility distribution.  One
is in Baltimore, Maryland and the other is in Nashville, Tennessee.
Numerous European cities produce steam from  refuse incineration for
utility distribution.

     Industrial Plants.  Large  industrial  facilities such as paper
mills, food processors, and major manufacturing plants,  or industrial
facilities who operate 24 hours a day, 7  days a week are preferred

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customers because a steam-generating (waterwall) incinerator is designed
for round-the-clock operation.  Some industrial users may specify the
quantities of steam to be delivered at specific times, and all will most
likely specify the temperature and pressure.  These factors must be
identified and incorporated in the design of the system.

     Many cities have single  industries large enough to utilize all the
steam that a large solid waste facility can produce.  In Saugus, Massachusetts,
a waterwall incinerator is being built that will handle 1,200 tons of
solid waste per day.  All of  the steam produced in this plant (about
350,000 pounds per hour) will be used in the adjacent General Electric
Company plant for heating and cooling, electric power generation and a
variety of manufacturing and  testing operations.

     Steam Electric Power Plants.  Although steam electric power plants
use tremendous quantities of  steam, it may be difficult to develop
satisfactory marketing arrangements in this sector.

     One  problem is that the  cost of accomodating an outside steam
source may exceed the value of the expected fuel savings.  Modification
of the pressurized components of the power plant could be prohibitively
expensive and could require that the power plant be kept out of service
for a long time.  Also using  supplementary steam may cause a boiler to
operate  at a  lower efficiency so that additional fuel will be needed to
obtain the same energy output.

     Another  marketing problem results from the fact that the amount of
electricity that a utility must produce varies considerably throughout
the day  from  day to day.  The utility's most efficient plants are  used
continuously  to supply the  base load demand, while the less efficient or
otherwise more costly plants  are only used during peak demand periods.
The utility would  be able to  buy steam only when the boiler that has
 been modified to accept  outside steam is operating.  Generally, base
 load  units operate 75 percent or more of the year, while peak load units
 operate  about 25  percent or less.  The base load plants which would make
 the  better market  are the ones  that  the  utility  is  least likely to
 subject  to a  disruption  in  service  required by a retrofit.

      An  alternative  to  retrofitting  an existing  unit would be to build a
 new baseload  turbine-and-generator  unit  especially  to  take steam produced
 in the solid  waste facility.  The  Florida  Power  and  Light Company
 suggested such  an  agreement to  the  Dade  County Government as  part  of a
 plan  to buy  energy from a  proposed  solid waste processing facility.
 According to  their proposal,  the  company  building  the  solid waste  facility
 would also build  the generating  facility.   Florida  Power and  Light would
 then  buy the  steam and  the  generating facility,  paying  for the  latter on
 the basis of the units  of electricity produced.  This  arrangement  requires
 that the municipality provide the  capital  investment;  and the municipality,
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rather than the utility, assumes the financial risk because reimbursement
is conditional on successful operation.  The value of the steam in this
situation is then adjusted to a price equivalent to the utility's "average"
generating costs.  In the case of the Dade County - Florida Power and
Light arrangement, an equation will be used to calculate this value (see
Appendix II).

                          Markets for Electricity


     Electricity produced from solid waste is identical  to electricity
produced by any conventional method.  The problem in marketing electricity
though, is that it usually can be sold only to the electric utility
serving the area, because within that service area the utility is generally
exempt from competition.  However,  where the electric utility is municipally
owned (10 percent of the nation's generating capacity),  the city is
already in the retail electric sales buisiness and thus,  may sell  this
new supply of electricity to anyone.

     The price that a utility will  pay for electricity depends on whether
it is used to satisfy baseload or peakload demand.   Peakload marketing
commands a much higher price (perhaps three to five times the price of
baseload electricity), however, a municipality needs to  sell  electricity
on a continuous basis (i.e., as baseload)  in order to maintain a continuous
solid waste disposal  operation.

     A municipality considering the sale of electricity  to a utility
should seek to establish a floating price  for the electricity, whereby
the price per kilowatt-hour rises as the demand on the utility increases.
Thus, the price would be a function of the incremental direct costs  the
utility incurs in producing the electricity needed to meet increased
demand.  Another approach would be  to sell  the electricity to the  utility
at a price equal to its average cost of production.

                         ANALYSIS AND CONCLUSIONS
     The key to successful  implementation  of a  solid waste energy recovery
program is to select a system that is  compatible with the energy market
as well as the community's  solid waste disposal  requirements.   Once a
suitable market has been identified,  an appropriate system can be
designed that will  convert  the solid  waste energy potential  into a
marketable form.  The system should not be selected until the  market has
been identified.

                    Comparison of Market Opportunities


     It is important that the market  is large in size since the customer
may have to absorb the cost of process changes  needed to accomodate


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the new energy source.  This is particularly true with regard to producing
an oil or a solid waste prepared fuel because special storage and
firing facilities are needed and because it is anticipated that (at
least for the present) that these fuels are fired only as a small percentage
of the total fuel load.

     The facility should be located near the point of solid waste generation
to reduce transportation distance and costs.

     Steam electric power plants are the most promising market for
several reasons.  They can accomodate large quantities of solid waste
prepared fuel and geographic dispersion.  The fact that most utility
systems consist of several power plants increases the probability that
an acceptable market  can be found.  The potential energy value of all
solid waste generated amounts to between 5 and 10 percent of the total
of fossil fuels used  for electric power generation.  However, limited
experience with use of solid'waste prepared fuels plus the limited
economic incentive of the price regulated electric utilities makes it
difficult to obtain commitments from utilities.

     Steam distribution systems are also a good  prospective market.  The
scarcity and rising cost of fuels (particularly  natural gas) is creating
a demand for new or expanded systems.  These systems are centrally
located in order to serve the greatest concentration of customers, so
the  solid waste haul  distance is minimized.  There may be less day-to-
day  and hour-to-hour  fluctuation in load than in electric power with the
constraints of a refuse-fired system.

                        Comparison of Energy Forms


      In marketing energy from solid waste it is  an advantage to produce an
energy form that can  be sold and used without regard to its derivation.
It  is also  helpful  if the type  of fuel produced  is storable and transportable
so  the solid waste  facility can be located and operated independently of
the  fuel market.

      Steam  and electricity satisfy the first objective; but as pointed
out  earlier, neither  can be stored and steam can be  transported only
very short  distances.

      The solid and  liquid fuels can  be transported and stored for brief
periods of  time  (several days to several weeks). However both fuels
require the  user to install special  storing and  firing facilities.  In
addition,  the  user  must follow  special handling  procedures to minimize
problems of air  pollution and corrosion.

      Gaseous fuels  currently  being produced do not appear to require
separate facilities for storage and  firing, but  they cannot be compressed
economically for extended storage and shipment.  The best of the gaseous
fuels  cannot be  economically  shipped more  than 2 miles.

                                     12

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                             Selecting an  Alternative
      As  the above discussion indicates,  implementing a  solid  waste
energy recovery program is  more complex  than  just  selecting a technology.
The  first  and most important consideration is  to secure  a  reliable  and
realistic  market.

      All aspects  of the market must be carefully understood by both  the
user of  the fuel  or energy  and the  municipality that supplies  it.  The
constraints of  the market will indicate  the technical  alternatives
available.   Once  the various major  energy markets and  the  energy forms
that can satisfy  those  markets are  examined (Table 1),  the possible
alternatives can  be narrowed to just one  or a  few technologies.
                                       Table 1
                        LOCATION AND STATUS OF ENERGY RECOVERY SYSTEMS
                         BY TECHNOLOGY TYPE AND ENERGY PRODUCT,  1975
Energy product
Technology
Electricity
Steam (other
than for
generating
electricity)
Solid fuel
(other than for
producing steam
or electricity) Gaseous fuel
Liquid
fuel
Waterwall
incineration:
   Burning of
   unprocessed
   solid waste

   Pulped or
   shredded
   solid
   waste

Processing for  St. Louis, Mo.t
use as supple-  Ames. Iowa§
        —        Braintree, Mass.t
                 Nashville, Tenn.t
                 Saugus, Mass.§
Hempstead, N.Y.**   Hamilton, Ontariot
mental fuel
for boilers
Pyrolysis

Methane
recovery:
   From
   sanitary
   landfills
   Controlled
   digestion
Direct combus-
tion/gas
turbine
Bridgeport, Conn.§
Chicago, Ill.§
Milwaukee, Wis.**
Monroe Co.. N.Y.**
New Britain, Conn.**
                  Not
               applicable

                  Not
               applicable
                                 Palmer Town-
                                 ship, Pa.**
                   Not
                applicable

                   Not
                applicable
                                  Not
                                applicable
                      Not
                    applicable

                      Not
                    applicable
                                 Not
                               applicable
                 Baltimore, Md.J
Los Angeles,
Calif.*t
Menlo Park, Calif.**
  Not
applicable
  Not
applicable

  'Not
applicable
  Not
applicable
                          South Charleston.
                          W. Va.*t
Los Angeles, Calif.**
Mountain View,
Calif.*
Pompano Beach.
Fla.*
        Not
      applicable
                              San Diego,
                              Calif.g
  Not
applicable
    *Research or experimental operations.
    tSystem in operation.
    Jin shakedown.      *
    §Under construction.
   **Construction not yet started, but system has been selected.
                                           13

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                      MATERIALS PRODUCTS AND MARKETS


     Materials in municipal solid waste that can potentially be recovered
and marketed include ferrous (magnetic) metals, glass, aluminum, and
paper.

     This section discusses the markets for each of these materials.
Included in the discussion are characterization and location of the
potential users, quality requirements for those markets, and approximate
market prices.  The following section includes a discussion of techniques
for conducting a market search and obtaining a purchase agreement.

                              FERROUS METALS


     Ferrous metals (excluding automobiles) comprise about 8 percent of
municipal post-consumer discards now going to disposal.  About 50 precent
of these ferrous discards are in the form of cans.*  The remainder
consists of appliances (16 percent) and miscellaneous items such as
hardware, metal castings, and non-descript pieces of metal (33 percent).
In 1973 only about 160,000 tons, or 1.4 percent of the ferrous metal in
these discards, were recycled.

     The characteristics of steel cans bear heavily on the marketability
for ferrous metals recovered from municipal solid waste.  Scrap steel
cans can be marketed to three discrete industries:  steel, copper
precipitation, and detinning.  All recovered steel scrap potentially can
be marketed to the steel industry, while only scrap steel cans are
generally acceptable to copper precipitation and detinning markets.
                              Steel Industry
Present Scrap Consumption
     The steel industry represents the largest potential market for
ferrous metals recovered from municipal solid waste.  There were 85
companies operating 145 plants in 1972.  Ninety-five percent of these
     *"Steel" or "tin" cans are often a composit of several materials.
Typical content is steel by weight (92 percent), tin (.4 percent),  lead
(1.5 percent), aluminum (3 percent or more) and organic coatings (1.8
percent).  Food cans almost always contain tin and lead (but not aluminum),
while some beverage cans contain no tin or lead but have aluminum tops.

                                    14

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plants are located in Standard Metropolitan Statistical Areas  (SMSA's).
and are therefore in close proximity to potential ferrous metal recovery
sites.2»P-7  (These mills are listed by State and City in the  EPA publication
"Locations of Markets for Recovered Materials").3

     Closely allied to the steel industry is the foundry industry which
melts pig iron scrap for molding into casting.  There are 4,000 to 5,000
iron and steel foundries in the United States.  They consume about 28
percent of the purchased scrap consumed in the United States.2,p.6  TO
date there has been relatively little experimentation with high can
content municipal ferrous scrap by this industry.

     Despite the use of almost 70 million tons of purchased scrap  by the
steel industry in 1973, the amount of municipal  ferrous scrap consumed
was insignificant.  Instead,  the scrap used consisted primarily of
borings, stampings and turnings from fabrication operations (e.g.  automobile
or can manufacturing), .demolition steel abandoned  automobiles and,  post-
consumer scrap from a variety of industrial  sources.*

     The quantities of steel  recovered from municipal  waste (excluding
autos) constitutes only about 0.1 percent of the steel  industry's  present
scrap consumption.  Thus, it  presently is basically  an experimental
input on an industry-wide basis.

     Municipal scrap is significantly different  from other sources  of
ferrous scrap.  The lead and  tin in the ferrous  scrap are  contaminants
in steelmaking.   The scrap may also contain  organics or other materials
that make the scrap undesirable.

     The steel industry is immense and its potential  assimilative capacity
for the relatively small  quantities of municipal ferrous scrap appears
to be great.   However, since  the steel  industry  is in  the  early stages
of experimenting with this type of scrap,  the  potential interest and
demand is somewhat uncertain.   Quality of municipal  ferrous  scrap will
be a key to interest by the steel  industry.

Steel Industry Scrap Specification

     If steel  scrap from municipal  solid  waste is  to be sold to the
steel industry,  then it must  meet certain  quality  and  purity specifications.
However, due to  the industry's limited  experience with this type of
scrap, only a  very general  specification  now exists.   Listed below  are
the specifications for can bundles issued  by U.S.  Steel:  6, p. 28

     -  Bundles  must be hydraulically compressed to  a  charging  box
        size not to exceed 24"  x  24"  x 60".  Density must  be greater
        than 70  Ib./cu.  ft.
     *A more complete discussion  of the  structure  of  the  steel  industry,
its scrap consumption, and scrap  recycling  issues  can be  found  in  other
EPA publications.

                                    15

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     -  Must be free of all liquids and solids prior to baling.

     -  Must be free of aluminum cans, loose tin plate and terne plate
        scrap in any form, dirt, garbage, nonferrous metals (except
        those used in can construction), plastics, vinyls in any form,
        and other non-metal lies of any kind.

     It is not certain to what degree this specification is accepted by
the industry as a whole, because of the absolute terminology used (i.e.
"free of all . . ").  Indeed, if interpreted literally, it would be
impossible to meet.

     The American Society for Testing Materials (ASTM is presently
endeavoring to establish specifications for steel scrap from municipal
waste.  The intent is to make the specifications as specific as possible
with regard to both physical and chemical properties.  The industry
members represented on this committee acknowledge that no one specification
can really suffice due to differences in the requirements of different
products being produced.  Therefore, negotiation of specifications with
each user mill will still be necessary, but published specifications,
such as from ASTM, can provide a common ground for negotiating and
pricing and will provide basic guidance for recovery equipment design.
However, the development of specifications may be a year or more away.

     To be certain of being able to meet the specifications of a particular
steel mill the official concerned with ferrous recovery must obtain
clearly defined quality requirements from the potential buyer of steel
scrap so that the ferrous recovery system in his plant can be designed
to meet that specification.  Alternatively, ferrous scrap could be sold
to a secondary materials processor who would further process and refine
the scrap and then sell it to a final consumer.  These determinations
should be made prior to final selection of a processing system.

Steel industry scrap prices

      It is difficult to quote steel industry prices for ferrous metals
recovered from municipal waste because little actual trading has occurred
and because variances in quality result in significant price variations.
It is likely that this material will have a market value equivalent to
a No. 2 bundle less some discount related to contaminant levels.  Table
1 shows the composite price of No. 2 bundles in the U.S. over the past 3
years.

      Some  insights into market value can be gained from the quotes for
ferrous metals being recovered in EPA's resource recovery plant demonstrations,
Examples are listed on the next page.

                                     16

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     Location                      Buyer                     Price/ton
                                                        (F.O.B.  the  resource
                                                        recovery  plant
                                                        early  1975)

Franklin, Ohio          GiHerman Steel Corporation            $25
St. Louis, Missouri     Granite City Steel Company             $20
Baltimore, Maryland*    Metal Cleaning and Processing
                          Company                              $20
     *Post incineration

                       Copper Precipitation Industry

Present Scrap Consumption

     The copper precipitation industry utilizes ferrous scrap as
precipitation iron.  In the process-, the scrap is placed in a solution
of copper sulfate and in a chemical reaction,  the copper is displaced
by the iron, thus forming iron sulfate, while  the copper is precipitated
and extracted.

     Eight copper products operate 23 copper precipitation facilities
in Montana, Nevada, Arizona, Utah, and New Mexico.   These plants are
listed in a separate EPA publication.3

     This industry presently consumes about 500,000 tons of ferrous
scrap each year.  An estimated 10 percent, or  50,000 tons, is
scrap from municipal recovery operations.   This represents almost
a third of the total municipal ferrous scrap recovery.

     The potential for additional use by this  industry  is somewhat
uncertain.  Though the growth of the industry  is not rapid, the undetinned
scrap from municipal recovery could displace more costly detinned scrap
now purchased from the detinners, which can in turn be  utilized by the
steel industry.   However, even if all 500,000  tons  of precipitation iron
came from municipal scrap, this amount would represent  only a small
portion of the over 9 million tons of scrap ferrous available in municipal
solid waste.   Nevertheless,  in the near term this is a  very viable and
significant market.

     The greatest difficulty posed by this market is its remoteness to
sources of supply, particularly cities in  the  East.  Nevertheless, the
industry regularly receives  scrap from as  far  away as Chicago and St.
Louis.

Copper Precipitation Scrap Specifications

     Specifications for ferrous metals used by thts industry are very
general at this time, just as those specifications available from the

                                     17

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                      TABLE 2
          COMPOSITE PRICE OF NO. 2 BUNDLES
                   ($/1ong ton)
            1972           1973          1974

Jan.
Feb.
Mar.
Apr.
May
June
July
Aug.
Sep.
Oct.
Nov.
Dec.
AVG.
$23.2
24.5
24.5
24.8
25.8
25.1
24.8
25.1
25.6
26.3
26.5
29.4
25.4
$34.6
35.5
34.4
35.3
38.5
40.4
38.5
37.8
39.0
41.8
48.6
47.6
39.4
$48.9
58.9
68.1
69.1
55.1
57.1
60.3
56.8
58.9
60.5
54.3
47.6
58.0

Source:  Iron Age Magazine
                          18

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steel industry.  Like most current users of  ferrous  scrap,  the  current
practice is to buy from scrap dealers whom they have depended on  in the
past rather than buying to a published specification.

     The general requirements from precipitation iron are listed  below.

     -  Shredded and crumpled cans not folded on themselves  (all
        magnetic material), loose packed density of  30#/cu.ft. maximum.

     -  Uniform guage and of maximum surface area to weight  ratio.

     -  If not shredded to this specification, the cans may  be prepared
        for shipment to a dealer and processor of scrap for  the copper
        industry.  In this case, the cans must be clean, free of heavy
        plate or wire, and shredded to a density of 40,000#/railroad
        car minimum shipment.

     -  Scrap cans sent to a dealer-processor may be incinerated first
        to remove lacquers, and organic contaminants, but not enough
        to cause oxidation, or metal  and strength loss.

     -  Baled cans are unacceptable because surface exposure is  too
        limited to permit reasonable reaction time.

     It is particularly important to note that the  material  must be of
fairly uniform thickness and have maximum surface area.   This is in
sharp contrast to steel  industry requirements,  where high density  is
important.

Copper Precipitation Scrap Prices

     There are no published prices for scrap  purchased  by this industry.
However, prices in 1974 ranged  from $50 to  $60  per  ton  or roughly
equivalent to the No.  2 scrap  bundle.   Market prices  for scrap metal  are
volatile,  however,  and there has been  a  declining price  trend in 1975.
Moreover,  these prices are not  attainable by  the  initial  processor who
simply shreds and magnetically  separates  ferrous metals.   Controlled
incineration of the scrap  by a  secondary  processor  is also necessary to
prepare it for this market.  Thus,  price  will  vary  depending on  the
degree of  processing involved.

     Because prices paid by copper precipitators are  likely  to be  higher
than those  offered  by  the  steel  industry, and because the specifications
of this  market will  generally be easier to  meet,  the  municipal marketer
should carefully investigate copper precipitators as  a  ferrous market.

                          The Detinning  Industry


Present Scrap Consumption

     Detinners chemically  process "tin plate" such  as that in cans to
remove tin  content.  Tin which  comprises  roughly  0.4 percent of  a  "tin
can", is a  very valuable commodity,  worth roughly $4.00 per  pound

                                    19

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(1974 average).  Although detinners process tin plate primarily for the
tin content, the resulting "tin free" steel is also valuable as a raw
material to the steel or copper precipitation industries.  It is commonly
sold to the steel industry as No. 1 bundles.

     Fourteen detinning plants are located in Baltimore, Maryland; E.
Chicago, Indiana; Elizabeth, New Jersey; Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Pittsburgh,
Pennsylvania; San Francisco, California; El Paso, Texas; and Wilmington,
Delaware.  These plants are listed by location in a separate EPA publication.

     The major contaminant in post-consumer can scrap is aluminum tops
from bi-metal beverage cans.  When present, aluminum undergoes a chemical
reaction during detinning causing foaming  (boilovers) and the production
of hazardous gases.   Removal of the aluminum adds significant cost,
approximately $10 per ton of cans processed to the detinning process.

     Nevertheless, the detinning industry  is a prime market for cans
recovered from municipal solid waste, and  the industry is showing increased
interest in post-consumer cans despite contaminants.  They have indicated
possible interest in  building new "mini" detinning plants wherever
30,000  tons of can scrap are guaranteed yearly.  Facilities processing
2,000 tons per day or more of municipal solid waste would probably
produce enough scrap  to meet this quota.

Detinning Scrap Specifications

     As with the steel and copper pricipitation industries, the specifications
for  scrap consumed by detinners are very general at present, but should
be improved by the ASTM committees working on this issue.  Two very
basic considerations  are that  (1) the material destined  for detinning
should  not be  incinerated  (indeed, post-incineration scrap is normally
unacceptable to the  detinning  industry since incineration causes the tin
to diffuse  into and  alloy with the base steel, making it unrecoverable),
and  (2) the scrap must have a  large surface to weight ratio to allow for
a maximum of surface exposure within a reasonable reaction time.

      In general, the detinning industry will accept scrap cans that meet
the  following  requirement.

      -   The scrap should be all magnetic material, not incinerated.

      -   Loose  flowing, whole cans, or shredded for maximum surface area.

      -   It  should not be balled or convoluted so as to interfere with
         access of detinning solution.

      -   Less  than  5  percent organic contamination.  Content may be used
         to  determine price.

      -   Less  than 4  percent aluminum  (only from a normal mix by bi-
         metallic cans).  Content may  be used to determine price.

                                      20

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     Detinning  Industry Prices.  The  1974 market value  for  can  scrap for
detinning ranged from $30 to $100 per ton depending on  the  quality of
the material and geographical location.  Naturally the  prices are
influenced by the price for scrap steel, since detinned cans are sold to
the steel industry.

     The detinning industry, just like copper precipitators, appears
able to offer prices for cans that are higher than the steel industry
can offer.  Therefore, this is a market which should be thoroughly
explored as an outlet for recovered municipal cans.

                    Summary Comments  on Ferrous Markets
     The ability to market ferrous metals from municipal solid waste is
heavily dependent on the form and purity of the recovered scrap.  The
three major potential markets have specification requirements that
differ markedly.  Therefore, it is important to arrange a market prior
to the selection of recovery configuration and technology.   If this is
done it may be possible to successfully recover and sell municipal steel
scrap because the recovery technology is available.

                                   GLASS
                         Present Scrap Consumption
     Glass comprises about 10 percent of the municipal  post-consumer
waste stream in the United States and in 1973 totaled  13.6 million tons
Glass containers represent the major portion of glass  found in  solid
waste.  Approximately two-thirds of these glass products  are made  of
flint or clear glass.  The remaining percent is split  between amber
glass used for beer bottles and green glass  used for wine and soft
drinks.  In 1973 only 350,000 tons or 3  percent of  the  glass in post-
consumer solid waste wa  recovered.

     There are two major potential  markets for recovered  waste  glass:
(a) as cullet for making new bottles, and (b)  as a  raw  material  for
making secondary products (i.e., Glassphalt^highway paving material,
foamed insulation, construction materials).

                         Gullet in Glass Products
     There are 119 glass plants  in the United  States with  most  located
in the east and west cost regions.  These  plants  are listed  by  location
in a separate EPA publication.3
                                     21

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     Glass manufacturers have long practiced adding waste glass to their
glass furnaces to improve the operating efficiency through reduced fuel
consumption and improved melting time.  Normal cullet use is 10 to 20
percent of the glass batch, but a few plants use higher percentages of
waste glass.  Normally the cullet used is in-plant scrap, which is
already color-sorted, of known quality, and is free of dirt organics and
metal contaminants.  A second source of generally acceptable cullet is
from volunteer community recycling centers.  The glass manufacturers
require this glass be color-sorted, reasonably clean, and free of caps
and neck rings.

                           Gullet Specifications
     The most  pressing  issue with markets for municipal glass centers on
 the quality of the  cullet.  If  the glass is properly sorted by color and
 if contaminants are kept  to a minimum,  it is likely that a buyer can be
 found.  However,  these  are major barriers.

 Color

     There are three basic colors of  glass containers produced:  clear
 (flint), green, and amber.  About two-thirds of  the glass produced is
 clear.

     To be acceptable to  the container  manufacturer for use in making
 flint  glass,  the cullet must be at least 95 percent clear.  Similarly
 color-sorted  cullet labeled "green" or  "amber" can contain only limited
 amounts of other colors.  These specifications provided by the Glass
 Container  Manufacturers Institute  in  1975 on cullet labeled "color-
 sorted" are  listed  below.

 Gullet Color          Amber  (%)        Flint  (%)         Green (%)

   Amber                 90-100          0-10               0-10
   Flint                  0-5            90-100              0-1
   Green                  0-35            0-15              50-100

      Waste glass meeting these color  specifications provides  the industrial
 user with  reasonable assurance that  his final  product will not be off-
 color, and therefore not meet  specification requirements.  Unfortunately,
 hand separation is  the  only color-sorting method currently being
 practiced  that provides good color separation.   Mechanical color-sorting
 is still  in the developmental  stages  and has not been proven  technically
 or economically feasible on a  large  scale  (See the  "Technology Options"
 section of Resource Recovery Plant Implementation—A Guide for Municipal
 Officials.)   The only glass recovery subsystem which includes a color-
 sorting process is  currently being evaluated at  EPA's demonstration
 project in Franklin, Ohio.   The evaluation  should be complete in early
 1976.

                                      22

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     Use of color-mixed cullet products has a much more  limited  potential
than use of color-sorted glass.  One limitation is that  color-mixed
cullet is practically never tised in making clear glass since roughly two-
thirds of the industry's production is in clear glass, the potential
buyers for mixed color cullet are not wide-spread.  Thus, in several
areas of the country, potential buyers do not exist.

     Though mixed color cullet is generally thought to be acceptable for
use in green or amber containers, many companies are uncertain of the
amount of this material their furnaces will  tolerate without causing
their product to be off-spec.  Experimentally, one glass company has
successfully used as much as 50 percent color-mixed cullet in their
amber furnaces and up to 80 percent mixed cullet in their green furnaces.

Contaminants

     Whether sorted by color or not, glass cullet  will  not be accepted
by container manufacturers unless rigid contaminant limitations are met.
Contaminants include metals, organ'ic materials,  ceramics  (refractories),
and excessive liquids.

     Refractories are by far the  most serious  concern  at  this time.
Metals and organics can be removed  in a resource recovery plant to  an
acceptable extent through a process  called "froth  floatation".   This
process is believed to be technically and  economically feasible though
it has not been demonstrated at full  scale on  glass from  municipal  solid
waste.  Refractories are also removed by  this  process,  but it is  questionable
whether a very stringent specification  could be  met consistently.   It is
possible that the glass industry  will  relax this specification  as they
gain more experience with use of  cullet from municipal  waste.

     The general  glass cullet specification for  container manufacturing
is listed below.

     -  Cullet must be noncaking  and  free  flowing.
     -  Cullet must show no drainage  from  the  sample.
     -  Maximum 0.2 percent organic  content (dry weight sample).
     -  Size 0 percent retained on 2" mesh screen; 15  percent maximum
        to  pass 140 mesh.
     -  Less than .05 percent magnetic  metal content;  no  particle to
        exceed 1/4".
     -  Nonmagnetics:   +20 mesh        1 particle  per  40# sample.
                                       No  particle shall  exceed 1/4".

     -  Refractories:

          +20 mesh      1  particle per  40# sample
                        No particle  shall  exceed 1/4".

          -20+40 mesh 2 particles  per  1# sample.

          -40+60 mesh 20 particles per  1# sample.

     -  Color specifications (see p.  22  and discussion above).

                                     23

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                                  Prices


     Waste glass that can meet the color and contamination specifications
discussed above will have a market value ranging from $15 to $25 per ton
F.O.B. the plant (1974 prices) depending on the geographical locations.
Color-sorted and clean color-mixed glass share an almost equal market
value based on the substitution for raw materials.

                    Secondary Products for Waste Glass


     There are several secondary products in which waste glass may be
useable.  The quality of the waste glass to be used in these products
generally may be lower than that used in the glass furnaces; thus,
color-sorting would not be needed and more contaminants could be tolerated.

     Secondary products fall into three broad categories:

     1.  Road building material:  Glassphalt^paving, slurry seal, glass
         beads for reflection paints.

     2.  Building materials:  bricks, foamed glass insulation, ceramic
         tiles, terrazzo tiles, building blocks, sewer pipe, aggregate.

     3.  Miscellaneous:  costume jewelry, ground cover, trickling
         filters, glass-polymer composites.

     Though some experimentation has been done with use of waste glass
in these products, none of them are now manufactured on a large scale
using waste glass.  However, utilization of waste glass has been shown
to be technologically feasible for many of these products.  One of the
most promising use is in brick manufacture.  Although no large scale use
in this manner is now taking place, it could be worthwhile for the city
or company marketing recovered glass to conta'ct a local brick yard and
explore marketing arrangements.

                     Summary Comments on Glass Markets


     Glass manufacturers have established stringent contamination
specifications for waste glass.  Although pilot plant work has been
performed, there are currently no full scale glass recovery systems
operating.  Thus, it is uncertain whether these specifications can be
met day to day on a production scale.  The uncertainty regarding the
ability to meet glass industry specifications should be investigated
with  potential buyers.


                                    24

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                              ALUMINUM


                      Present  Scrap Consumption


     Aluminum  comprises about 0.7 percent of the municipal solid waste
 stream.  About half  of the aluminum discards in solid waste are cans,
 one-third  are  foils,  and  the  remainder largely from major appliances.
 Aluminum composition  varies significantly from one community to another
 due to differences in aluminum beverage can distribution.

     Aluminum  scrap  constituted 27 percent of the aluminum produced in
 1973.  Sixty percent  of the scrap utilized was consumed by secondary
 smelters,  17 percent  by primary producers, and the remainder by aluminum
 fabricators and foundaries.   There are 31 primary aluminum producers and
 111 secondary  aluminum smelters in the United States.  The locations of
 these users are listed in a separate EPA publication.3

     The only  form of aluminum recovery from municipal solid waste
 currently  being practiced is  source separation of aluminum cans through
 volunteer  community recycling centers.   In 1973 about 34,000 tons of
 aluminum cans  were recovered, which represents 3.5 percent of all  the
 aluminum discarded.   Source separated aluminum cans generally can be
 remelted by the primary producers and made directly into can stock.

     Mechanical extraction of scrap aluminum from mixed municipal  solid
waste is being developed and as yet has not been demonstrated on a
 commercial scale.  It is anticipated that aluminum scrap extracted by
mechanical means will be lower in quality than that recovered through
 source separation.  It is likely that a large portion of this may be
 sold to secondary smelters who will  pretreat and upgrade the aluminum by
 removing contaminants and diluting the  alloy contents to acceptable
 levels. As is common with any scrap metal, the value of this recovered
aluminum scrap is likely to be negotiated based on the quality of the
recovered product and the specifications  required by the purchaser.

                        Scrap Specifications


     The quality requirements of purchasers  may vary from plant to plant
depending on the alloy content in their products being produced.   However,
in general, scrap aluminum should meet  the following specifications:6

     -  free of sand, grit,  and particularly glass (at melt temperatures,
        aluminum reduces the silica  in  glass to silicon which will
        alloy and cause the melt to  be  off-spec).

     -  free of iron contamination (1 percent or less)
             .*
     -  contain a minimum of organic contamination.   These materials
        will  burn off in  the  furnace causing  additional  load  on the
        air pollution equipment.

                                    25

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     -  have a low surface to volume ratio to avoid melt-loss during
        resmelting--hen'ce it should be baled or briquetted.  For the
        same reasons, fines are also limited.

     Presently, a committee of the American Society for Testing Materials
(ASTM) is attempting to develop more refined specifications.  However,
until significant quantities of this scrap are recovered and used
successfully at full-scale operations, glass cullet useage will be con-
fined to individual company experimentation and specification setting.

                               Prices
     A price of $.15 per pound ($300 per ton) was paid in 1974 by certain
aluminum companies and brewers for aluminum cans brought to their collec-
tion centers.  Aluminum recovered mechanically will be less consistent
in quality and priced accordingly.  Prices in the range of $100 to $400
per ton are probable current for this scrap depending  on the quality.

                Summary Comments on Aluminum Markets
     Like glass, aluminum is not presently being recovered in any great
quantities from mixed municipal waste in any full-scale plants.  However,
pilot plant work is being performed and full-scale operations will begin
in 1976 in Ames, Iowa.  The quality specifications for aluminum seem to
be a somewhat lesser problem than those for glass recovery.  The high
market value of aluminum permits further processing or price discounts
if quality is not sufficiently high.  Key issues for early resolution
facing the city considering aluminum recovery are (1) the quantity of
aluminum in the local waste stream, (2) the quality specifications of
potential buyers, and (3) the level of confidence in developing technology
to produce a product meeting those specifications.

                             WASTEPAPER
                    Present Wastepaper Consumption
     Paper recovery depends primarily on source separation.  However,
some mechanical  separation of paper  is likely in the future, and in
addition source  separation of paper  would affect the input tonnage and
composition to a recovery plant.  Source separation of paper should be
considered explicitly  by a city contemplating a resource recovery plant
so that overall  recovery strategy can be integrated.

     Source separation technologies  and paper market issues are dis-
cussed in greater detail in other EPA publications.9» ^0» H» ^2 The
objective here is to provide a general understanding of wastepaper
markets and quality requirements so  that the roles of both mechanical
and source separation  can be better  understood.

                                     26

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      In 1973,  13.8 million  tons of  paper were  recovered  and  recycled.
About two-thirds of this quantity was recovered from  post-consumer
waste; the remainder originated in  fabricating and converting  opera-
tions.

     Most of the paper now  received is obtained through  source separa-
tion and separate collection.  Some is obtained through  hand sorting
from mixed waste, and almost none is recovered through mechanical  separation
from mixed waste.  Obviously, the fraction of paper now  recovered  from
post-consumer  sources represents the highest value (clean, high grade
paper), most readily recoverable fraction of paper discards.  Nonetheless,
a vast amount  of paper is still available for recovery.  (Table 3).

     The major paper industry market for post-consumer recovered paper
is combination boxboard.  These are boxes used for packaging dry foods,
shoes, and clothes, and similar items.   Each ton of combination boxboard
requires 0.25  tons of corrugated,  0.21  tons of old newspapers,  and 0.48
tons of mixed wastepaper.   The construction paper and board sector of
the industry also uses substantial  quantities of wastepaper,  and the
quality requirements of this market are  not exacting.   Properly segregated
corrugated containers are  used to  manufacture new corrugated  containers,
and separated newspapers are used  in manufacture of newsprint.   High
grade wastepaper, e.g.  printing paper,  is  used to manufacture printing
paper, tissue, and other products.  More  data on wastepaper use  is  available
in other EPA publications.7-11

     Paper mills are located throughout  the nation;  however most of the
mills that now use wastepaper are  located  in the  Northeast and North
Central  regions of the  nation.   Lists of mills  organized  by product
category are contained  in  a  separate EPA publication.3 Exports offer a
market that has grown  in recent years and may provide  an  important
outlet in selected areas of  the nation.

                          Specifications


     For a fiber fraction  to be readily marketable,  it must correspond
to an existing fiber type.   For example, the short groundwood fibers
from newspapers cannot  be  used  as a  replacement for  the long  kraft
fibers used in manufacturing corrugated  boxes.  Most  paper mills rely
heavily on specific fiber  inputs and make substitutions among fibers
only within narrow limits.   (The greatest substitution occurs in con-
struction paper grades.  Boxboard mills  can use some mixed grade fiber).
Thus, a  mixed fiber such as  that obtained from  a combination of all  the
different types of fiber found  in municipal  solid  waste would be acceptable
for only the lowest strength or quality  products.   Fortunately, there
are many such paper products.
                                    27

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                                       TABLE  3
                            PAPER IN  THE  WASTE  STREAM  1973*
                                   (million tons)
     Category
 Apparent.
Consumption
Estimated Post-Consumer Discard
Total
Gross

Newsprint
Wri ti ng/publ i shi ng
papers
Corrugated packaging
Other
TOTAL

10.
13.
17.
20.
61.

7
3
2
1
4

10
11
15
16
53

.4
.0
.1
.5
.0
Household
Net* Gross Net*
,
8.0
9.7
11.8
14.7
44.2

9.9
6.9
1(2
10.3
28.3

7.
6.
1.
10.
25.

5
9
2
3
9
Other

Gross Net*

4
13
6
26

.5
.1 2
.9 10
.2 4
.5 18

.5
.8
.6
.4
.3

*This table was developed
Institute in their annual publi
from statistics compiled
cations: The Statistics
by
of
the American Paper
Paper and Paperboard,
Wood Pulp  Capacity 1973 - 1976.  The methodology employed is described in an
EPA report (EPA/5307SW-147).A Sol id:Waste Estimating Procedure:  Material
Flows Approach.  Fred Lee Smith, Jr.  May 1975.

    +Gross discards less quantity recovered.
                                         28

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     Wastepaper is classified into a large number of grades  that  specify
the source of the fiber and the amount of contaminants that  the grade
can tolerate.  Wastepaper specifications are described in a  publication
of the National Association of Recycling Industries.H  Only the  news,
corrugated, and mixed grades are relevant to those concerned with post-
consumer wastepaper recovery.

      Markets for Paper Recovered in Central  Recovery Plants
     The paper discarded from households and commercial establishments
handled by the city and that is not separately collected will arrive at
the centralized resource recovery facility in a more or less contaminated
state.  For some waste sources, the degree of contamination may be
minimal and permit a favorable yield from sorting at a central  facility.
The traditional sorting methods is hand picking.   In such situations,
the practice has been to sort only those selected loads having  very nigh
paper content.  A rule of thumb has been that the derived paper fraction
must equal 50 percent or more of the total  waste load in order  for this
practice to be feasible.

     The technological possibilities for recovering  paper fiber from a
mixed refuse stream have only recently begun to be explored.  The first
major novel technology introduced into this area  was the Hydrasposal/
Fiberclaim system developed by Black Clawson,  Inc. in 1969 and  demon-
strated recently with EPA funding at Franklin,  Ohio.   This system is
discussed in the "Technology" section of this  Guide.   In the  Fiberclaim
process, all  incoming refuse is first wet pulped  into a slurry,  the
fiber is drawn off, and then cleaned to produce a marketable  fiber.
The Franklin plant has operated successfully for  over 3 years on a
continuous basis.   The quality of the fiber resulting from this  process
is low but is acceptable for use as a fiber input to a roofing  felt
mill.  The demand for paper varies with construction activity,  however,
which may preclude the stable markets that  a community will require.

     All currently available mechanical  fiber  recovery processes yield
relatively low value fiber fractions—somewhat equivalent to  the mixed
grade of wastepaper.   The markets for such  material  are limited.
Processes now under development have the potential of yielding more use-
ful fiber fractions such as newsprint-rich  stream or a high strength
kraft fiber component, but neither the technology nor the economics
of these alternative processes have been well  developed.

                        Price Considerations


     Prices of wastepaper have historically been  unstable.  Figure 1
illustrates the wastepaper price index over the period 1950 to 1975.
The two major anomalies correspond to very  dramatic  periods in
recent economic history—the Korean War and the short-lived 1973-74
                                     29

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CO
o
      350
       300
      250
      200
      150
      100
       50
          1950
                                 FIGURE  I

           WASTEPAPER  WHOLESALE  PRICE  INDEX - 1950-1975


                               (1967 = 100)
  1955                   I960                   1965


SOURCE:  U.S. Bureau  of Labor Statistics. Code 09-12.
1970
1975

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economic boom.  On such occasions, demand momentarily spurts ahead  of
installed capacity.  Capacity utilization rates approach 100 percent
and industries become willing to use secondary materials as the input
of last resort.  This, in turn, creates a sharp increase in the price
of secondary material.  The correction—increased supplies of waste-
paper, increased virgin material availability, or downturn in the
economy—results in an equally rapid drop in prices.

     Wastepaper prices vary by grade and region.   Prices rose in the
1973 boom period but then began to decline as markets collapsed in the
1974 recession.  Although severe price fluctuations are rare, the
decision-maker should ensure that his selling arrangements  take account
of their possibility.  Specifically, contracts should be established
which guarantee a minimum purchase prices.

                 Summary Comments on Paper Markets
     Quality requirements of most markets  for wastepaper can  presently
be satisfied only by recovery through  separation  at  the  source  or  hand
sorting from mixed waste.  In considering  a  resource recovery plant,
the inclusion of source separation or  hand sorting of paper in  the
overall recovery scheme will  impact on overall  recovery  economics.
It may increase the economic  viability or  decrease it depending on
market prices for the recovered  paper  and  for the energy or fuel out-
puts of the recovery plant.   Also,  source  separation of  paper would
affect the input tonnage and  composition to  a recovery plant.  Thus,
source separation of paper should be considered at the same time that
the city is contemplating a  resource recovery plant  so that overall
recovery strategy can be integrated.
                                   31

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                    MARKETING RECOVERED MATERIALS*


     The previous discussion addressed the characteristics of materials
and energy products recoverable from solid waste and their potential
markets.  This information provides a foundation for the marketing
of such products.  However, the question of technique is also important.
How should one go about finding a buyer for resource recovery products
and obtaining a commitment to buy?  The objective of this section is to
provide general guidance that will lead hopefully to a sound marketing
technique.

                    Marketing and Sales Strategies


     Obtaining advance commitment for the purchase of recovered materials
is the single most important step in resource recovery planning.  The
commitments provide the financial assurances that municipal managers
seek and the specifications accompanying the commitments determine the
type of plant to be built.  Again, the statement made earlier needs to
be emphasized:  MARKETS FIRST; SPECIFICATIONS DETERMINE TECHNOLOGY.
The recovery plant must be designed and operated to produce products to
the specifications of the market commitments or else economic success of
the plant will be unlikely.

     An obvious first step in the marketing process is to determine
which types of products can be sold in a reasonable proximity to the possible
recovery plant sites.  This means conducting a market survey.  The elements
of such a survey will be discussed below.

     The second step is to attempt to obtain as strong a commitment as
possible from these potential buyers.  One feasible approach developed
here is to obtain "letters of intent" from prospective buyers.  Letters
of intent will also be discussed below.

                        Who Does the Marketing?


     There are two parties that could be designated to do the marketing.
First, the city can rely on system bidders to obtain their own market
agreements for the system they propose; then the city can evaluate the
     *The section is based on information obtained from the National
Center for Resource Recovery, Inc.

                                    32

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strength of their market commitments as a facet of  their  bid  to  build,
own, and operate a proposed facility.  Secondly, the city can obtain
these commitments in advance of a system procurement.  In this case,  the
developmental marketing is done directly by the municipality  or  by  its
consultants. In this latter case, the availability  of markets is the
major determinent in the type of recovery system that a community should
try to procure.

     The issue of who conducts the marketing cannot be separated from
the choice of type of procurement (e.g. A & E design of municipally
owned plant v.s. turnkey or full service contract for either privately
or pub!ically owned plant).   Even if turnkey or full service is  selected
and a request for proposal  (RFP) is issued,  the RFP will  be more or less
specific about markets, depending upon whom the city designates  to do
the marketing.  Unless a very general RFP is to be issued, advance
marketing is a requirement for specifying a  system.   (This does  not
preclude additional marketing by bidders.)   These procurement issues are
discussed in the "Overview"  and "Procurement"  sections  of this Guide.

     For purposes of discussion below,  it will  be assumed that the
municipality or its consultant will  conduct  advanced marketing.

                         THE MARKETING  SURVEY


     The purpose of the market survey is  to  locate  potential  buyers  for
recovered products and to determine the conditions—price and quality--
under which they would purchase these products.   The market  survey  is
the first major step toward  selection of  a recovery  technology.   If
buyers for particular products do not exist  within  reasonable  transportation
distances, or if their specifications or  probable  prices  appear  unsatis-
factory, then technologies  producing these products  should not be investigated
seriously.  If potential  buyers exist,  then  serious  consideration can  be
given to the equipment and  processes to produce products  to  the  buyer's
specification.

Likely Markets


     The likely markets for  the products  recoverable from  municipal
waste have been discussed earlier in this guide document.  A detailed
listing of users of various  materials is  provided  in the  EPA publication
"Locations of Markets for Recycled  Materials."   The  EPA publication
"Where the Boilers Are" provides  information on one  potential  market,
electric utilities,  for refuse derived  fuel.  Other  potential  fuel and
steam markets can be identified by  referring  to data gathered  by  local
chambers of commerce and  by  State and local  air pollution  control authorities.

     In the case of recovered  metals, glass,  and paper,  it may be desirable
to contact the scrap processor whose role it has traditionally been  to
upgrade scrap materials and  market them.   Scrap processors typically
already have working relationships  with scrap  users, are  trusted for

                                     33

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quality control, can market to numerous alternative buyers, and can
inventory materials to help match supply to demand.  Because of the
upgrading that the scrap dealer provides, the specifications that the
recovery plant products must meet need not be as stringent as required
by final users.

     In return for these services, the scrap processor receives a fee
that results in a lower gross price paid for the scrap to the resource
recovery plant compared to what may be paid by a paper mill, steel mill,
or other ultimate user.  However, the reduced purchase price must be
discounted by the municipal planner against the value of the services
and the consequent reduced investment in resource recovery facilities
and operational costs.

Shipping Distances
      In conducting a market  survey,  how far from the recovery plant
 location  should  one search?   Simple  answers are not possible.   Indeed
 the  shipptng  limits will  be  determined partly  by the price offered, the
 cost of recovery, and  the shipping rates  that  can  be negotiated.

      It is  possible to estimate  freight charges for particular  commodities
 in many cases by contacting  a local  railroad or truck company.  However,
 "rate table"  quotes obtained by  phone might be significantly different
 from rates  obtained through  serious  negotiation.   Also, one should
 expect the  carrier to  ask about  quantities to  be shipped, physical form,
 schedules,  and loading and unloading facilities.

      We believe that providing meaningful general  rate  information is
 useful only for rough  estimates.  More precise information can  be obtained
 only through negotiation  with local  carriers.

 The  Specification


      After  locating the likely markets, the next step is  to approach the
 potential buyer to determine quality requirements  and potential price.
 The  quality of the recovered product (its specification)  must assure
 utility  in  current manufacturing processes.  An existing  industry,
 accustomed  to operation on particular  raw materials, will be unwilling
 to drastically alter  its  processes  to  accommodate  perhaps a relatively
 small amount of material  from a  resource  recovery  process.

      It would be helpful  to  have product  samples from other recovery
 plants to show to prospective buyers.  The  seller  should  keep in mind,
 however,  that essentially a  specification,  not a product, is being sold.
 The  specification designates the form  and composition of  the product as
 the  basis for a acceptance or rejection.  Sale to  a specification means
 that failure to meet  it results  in  downgrading of  price by the  buyer, or

                                      34

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rejection of shipments.  It is critical that the seller understand  this.
A bid to a specification is of no value if a product cannot be  produced
to meet the specification.

     It is likely that the prospective buyer is unfamiliar with recovered
materials and may be somewhat uncertain of its performance.  The prospective
seller should familiarize the buyer with the specification developments
underway by consensus standard writing organizations such as ASTM,
industry associations, or other individual firms, and provide product
samples when possible.  These specifications are discussed earlier  in
this document.

                           Letter of Intent


     The Letter of Intent (LOI)  is the instrument negotiated between the
seller and the potential  purchaser of recovered materials.   The LOI
is the culmination of the market survey,  the financial  underpinning  to
the resource recovery plant,  and the precursor  to orders.

Terms and Conditions


     The fundamental terms and conditions  of an advance commitment  to be
included in the LOI are length of commitment, quantity  of  material,
quality, delivery schedule, termination and price (which will  be discussed
separately).  The LOI may be  worded as an  intent to issue  a purchase
order to the resource recovery plant subject to the terms  and  conditions
in the LOI and is usually included in the  buyer's purchase  orders.

     The length of commitment ought to be  related to the financing term
of the resource recovery  plant.   It is highly unlikely,  and even unreasonable,
to expect the advance commitment to be for the  full  financing  term,
which will be 10 or more  years.   However,  both  objectives may  be fulfilled
if the commitment were for the first five  operating  years of the facility.
Because of the length of  time needed to plan and  construct  a recovery
plant, this may translate to  eight or nine calendar  years,  a long commitment.

     The quantity of material  to be sold should be  specified in  the  LOI.
Because of the uncertainty in the composition of the waste,  the  quantity
of recovered material to  be delivered may  be expressed  as a range for
the first year, subject to adjustment within this  range after  the first
year.

     The quality of the material  to be delivered  is  delineated  by a  specifi-
cation which becomes part of  the LOI.   Furthermore,  the  LOI  should
address who will  be responsible  for the accompanying quality control
program as well as the basis  for rejection of downgrading.
                                     35

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     Guarantee delivery of a specified quantity and time schedule should
be made by the facility operators if they are to service the customers
(buyers).  The operator may not divert deliveries to "spot" markets,
even at higher prices except insofar as this may be provided for in the
letter.

     The delivery schedule should be expressed in quantity per day, week
or month and method of delivery stating form of transportation and
minimum shipments.  This is essential information for planning the
storage facilities, shipping dock and railroad siding at the resource
recovery plant.

Pricing Arrangement


     There are several ways the price paid  for the recovered material
can be established and expressed in  the LOI.  It can be based on a fixed
price, commodity  quote or the  same price as being paid for a comparable
material.  Whichever  of  these  pricing structures is used, every effort
should be made to include a minimum  (floor) price which is an essential
feature  for  preparing a  reliable financial  forecast.

     A fixed price states merely that the price paid per ton will be  the
stated figure, which  may change at a later  date  (say after the first
year)  according to a  specified formula, but is guaranteed not to fall
beneath  a floor price.   This  is a useful method of pricing materials
that are not directly comparable to  a standard scrap grade.  It has been
used for glass and aluminum and  is easily combined with a floor price.
For example, the  LOI  may state,  "the price  paid  for the recovered aluminum
the first year shall  be  15
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     A third pricing arrangement pegs the price the  buyer  pays  to what
is paid for a similar grade to another supplier.  This  is  a  useful
arrangement at times when the buyer has no historical pattern related to
a commodity quote or the recovered product is a small amount of the
total raw material purchased.  This sort of arrangement has  been used
for old newsprint when the purchasing mill and their largest supplier
were not in an area covered by one of the standard quoting services.
Presumably, it can be the basis for determining market prices for glass
cullet where the price paid for the cullet is determined by  the  cost  of
equivalent raw material (predominantly sand and soda ash).

Private vs. Public Ownership


     The discussion of terms, conditions and pricing is  generally applicable
whether the resource recovery facility is to be privately or municipally
owned—with the exception that if private,  the potential owners  have the
right to negotiate their own arrangements and prices.

     If the resource recovery plant is to be publicly owned,  the dicta
of open government and fairness generally requires that  all responsible
and responsive bidders have an opportunity  to bid  for the recovered
material.  The challenge,  then, is how to secure the  LOI  as  an advance
commitment while still  preserving public bidding rights.   An  innovative
solution,  used by the Metropolitan  Washington Council  of Government,
Allegheny County, Pennsylvania,  and the  Tennessee  Valley Authority was
to negotiate a Letter of Intent to  Bid (as  distinguished from a  Letter
of Intent to Buy).  The sample LOI  appended  here is structured in this
way.

     In signing an LOI  to Bid, the  potential  purchaser essentially
agrees to  submit a response to an  invitation  to bid  for  the purchase of
recovered  material  some time in  the future.   The LOI  to  Bid covers all
of the necessary terms  and conditions  and the price  structure.   The
potential  bidder further  agrees  that the  bid  will  not be less than a
stated price.   This  minimum stated  price  can  then  be  used for financial
planning,  the same as with an  LOI to Buy.  The bidder may  increase this
price at his option  when  responding to the final invitation to bid.

     There are two cautions  in dealing with an LOI to Bid.  One  is that
prior to final  bid opening,  the  exact  prices  in the  LCI's should be  kept
confidential  because knowledge of any  one firm's price could  be  used to
advantage  by a competitor.   This  confidentiality may  be  arranged through
a consultant or other trustworthy third  party.  The  second  caution is
that the legality of this  approach  has not been tested.  However,  it
seems reasonable and fair  hence  at  least within the  spirit  of public bid
laws.
                                   37

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Cancelling the LOI


     Municipal planning for resource recovery is a lengthy process,
having taken three years or longer in many communities.  Even after this
length of time, a resource recovery system may not be implemented. It is
not fair to ask a potential buyer to maintain a commitment this long
unless there is a reasonable chance of success that plans will be implemented,
A potential buyer's commitment is his plan to use a certain amount of
recovered material at the exclusion of making other commitments elsewhere.

     A fair approach is to have a statement in the LOI (whether to Bid
or Buy) terminating the commitment unless the municipality has demonstrated
substantial progress toward implementation by a specified date, subject
to renewal.  Substantial progress may be completion of a planning document,
issuance of a  request for proposals, or similar event.
                                      38

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                              APPENDIX I


               HOW TO CALCULATE WASTEBURNING CAPACITIES


     As an aid for rapid calculations concerning boiler capacities and
their potential for burning solid waste, a nomograph (Figure 2) was
developed.

     The nomograph shows the relationship among four variables:  (1) the
capacity of the boiler, in megawatts (MW); (2)  the load factor of the
boiler, as a percent of time; (3) the heat rate (or efficiency) of the
boiler, in terms of Btu per kilowatt hour (KWH); (4) the tons of solid
waste that can be burned in the boiler each working day, assuming that waste-
fuel replaces 10 percent of the fossil fuel input and assuming a 5-
day work week for waste collection and handling.  For any problem, three
of the variables must be defined to calculate the fourth.   When more
than one of the variables are unknown, typical  values for some of these
can be used to make rough estimates of the remaining unknowns.  For
example, given only the boiler capacity and load factor to determine the
waste burning capacity, one could use a typical plant heat rate of say,
11,000 or 12,000 Btu/KWH.

     An example calcualtion is given on the nomograph itself:

     Q.   How much refuse could be burned each  day of the week in a
          200 MW boiler with a load factor of 60 percent and a heat
          rate of 11,300 Btu/KWH?
     A.   500 tons/day.

     The advantage of a nomograph is its complete  flexibility  to  allow
quick calcualtions to be made for any boiler or plant  combinations.   In
addition, although the calculation would no doubt  usually  be done to
determine the amount of refuse a boiler could burn,  given  its  capacity,
load factor, and heat rate, the "reverse" calculation  may  be useful to a
municipality.  For example, what is the size of a  generating plant that
could be expected to process all the refuse generated  in the municipality,
given the quantity as 300 tons of refuse per day,  a  typical plant heat
rate of say 11,000 Btu/lb., and a typical load factor  of say 50 percent?
The answer is 146 MW.
                                   39

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                   ,  DEVELOPMENT OF THE NOMOGRAPH

     The nomograph is based on the following steps:

A.   Define MW as unit (plant or boiler) capacity, in megawatts;
     define PC as the unit load factor, in percent;
     define H as the unit heat rate, in Btu/Kwh

B.   The unit daily energy requirement is (1,000 x MW x PC x H x 24) Btu/day
                                                       100

C.   Assume the refuse-burning capability of the unit is 10 percent
     of the total fuel being fired.  The energy to be supplied by refuse
     is thus  (4 x MW x PC x H) Btu/day.

D.   Assuming a heating value for refuse of 4,500 Btu/lb, the energy
     is equivalent to:

     24 x MW  x PC x H    tons of refuse per day
       4,500  x 2,000

E.   The above quantity is essentially a "year-round" daily figure,
     provided the average  load factor for a long period time is
     used.  The equivalent quantity of refuse  (R) to be transported
     to a plant or boiler  on a "5 working days per week" basis is
     therefore found:

     R= 24  x  MW x  PC x H x 1_ = (3.733 x 10-6)  MW x PC x H
          4,500 x  2,000    5

                                        Tons of refuse/working day
                                 40

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                                       SCUD WASTE COMBUSTION AND GENERATING PLANT PARAMETERS
100	i
   0—'
  Figure 2. The nomograph shows the relationship among four v, .iablcs:  (1) the
     capacity of tho boiler. (2) the load factor of the boiler. (3) the heat rate of
     •ho boiler. (4) tons of solid wasto that can be burned in tho boiler each day.
     For example, how much  refuse could be burned each day of  tho week in a
     94 MW boiler with a load factor of 52.5% and a heat rate of 12.000 Bf..'/KWH?
     Anw/»r  221 tons/day.
                                                                                                                                700—,
                                                                                                                                600 —
                                                                                                                                400 —
      u.
      u.
      5
      a
      u
      a
                                                                                                                                        c
                                                                                                                                        I
                                                                                                                                300 —
                                                                                                                                200—
                                                                                                                                100—
o-J

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                              APPENDIX 2


ADVANCE LETTER OF INTENT TO BID FOR THE PURCHASE OF RECOVERED PRODUCTS
     Whereas, the	Corporation (hereinafter called
the CORPORATION) endorses resource recovery from municipal solid waste
as a means toward a cleaner environment and preservation of natural
resources, and

     Whereas, the CORPORATION recognizes the need to develop firm expressions
of intent to purchase materials or energy products recovered from waste
within known financial parameters as part of the planning process for a
new endeavor such as this, and

     Whereas,	__	(hereinafter
called the DEVELOPMENT AGENCY, is evaluating the prospects of substituting
resource recovery for its traditional means of solid waste disposal, and

     Whereas, the DEVELOPMENT AGENCY recognizes the need to establish
financial data  for the determination of the economic feasibility of
processing up to 	 tons per day of municipal solid waste to
produce up to          tons per day of                   (hereinafter
known as the PRODUCT) in a form usable and acceptable  to the CORPORATION
according to the Specifications attached to this Agreement and made part
hereof.

     (a)  It will be a firm bid for five (5) years offering an Exchange
          Price either fixed or related to a commodity quote, and if
          the Exchange Price is not fixed, it will offer a Floor Price
          which will not fall during the term of the contract.

    (b-4)  If the Exchange Price to be  paid by the CORPORATION is to be
          a fixed dollar amount per unit of product, f.o.b. the recovery
          facility  (or the CORPORATION'S plant - choose one), the
          bid shall not be less than	per ton.

                                     OR

    (b-2)  If the Exchange Price is to  be based on a commodity quote,
          the monthly Exchange Price shall relate to the quotation at
          the close of that month for	(the same or


                                      42

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          the  appropriate analogous  commodity  and  location)  as published
          in the  last issue  of  that  month  of	 (fill  in source of
          quote)  using the (mid-range  or highside,  or  lowside choose one)
          of the  quote,  f.o.b.  the recovery facility (or  the  CORPORATION'S
          plant - choose one).

          If the  Exchange Price is to  be bid in terms  of  a percentage of
          the  quoted  price,  the Exchange Price shall not  be bid at  less
          than	percentage  of appropriate  quote  as defined  above.
          (Fill in percentage).

    (c)   If the  Exchange Price is not fixed, a Floor  Price will be
          bid  which will  not be below  $.       per  ton f.o.b.  (fill  in
          dollar  amount)  the recovery  facility (or  CORPORATION'S plant -
          choose  one).

    (d)   The  CORPORATION shall  retain the right to reject any material
          delivered which does .not meet Specifications.  Such rejection
          will be at  the  expense of  the resource recovery plant.

    (e)   The  bid will be subject to force majeur.

    (f)   It-will  be  noted the  Additional Conditions of the CORPORATIONS
          covering  general terms and conditions of purchase,  acceptance
          delivery, arbitration, weights, and downgrading not explicitly
          covered in  this Letter of  Intent or by reference, will be
          negotiated  according  to good business practices and include
          such additional  conditions as are attached to this  Agreement
          and made  a  part hereof.

    (g)  This Advance Letter of Intent to bid is null  and void if during
          the  period  between its execution and the  actual  bid or negotiated
          contract the CORPORATION'S plant ceases operation or no longer
          has a use for this or equivalent grade of recovered PRODUCT.
         The DEVELOPMENT AGENCY shall  further recognize that a clause
          similar to  this shall be incorporated in  the  actual  bid when
         made or contract when signed.

    (h)  This Advance Letter of Intent may be assigned by the DEVELOPMENT
         AGENCY.

     THEREFORE,  in consideration of the fact that  the  legal  authority to
sell recovered products may rest upon  a requirement to advertise for the
purchase of such products,  it is mutually agreed between  the CORPORATION
and the DEVELOPMENT AGENCY  that:                            c -

     I.  The CORPORATION, as an expression of its  support of the municipal
     solid waste recovery program,  agrees  to:

     (1) offer herein a firm commitment to bid fdr the purchase of the
         recovered PRODUCT at prices not less  than those  entered

                                    43

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         here should the  DEVELOPMENT  AGENCY  be  required  or  decide  to
         effect a competitive  procurement, and

     (2)  agree that if  public  bidding is  not necessary and  not  the course
         chosed by the  DEVELOPMENT  AGENCY then  the  conditions of this
         Letter of Intent may  be considered  as  a  bona fide  offer to
         purchase the recovered  PRODUCT at prices not less  than those
         recovered here.

     (3)  respond should a bid  be required with  a  bona fide  offer to
         purchase which will  include  the  following:

     II.  The DEVELOPMENT AGENCY  agrees:

     (1)  to see that  the recovery plant establishes specification
         assurance procedures  for the recovered PRODUCT, using  good
         industrial  quality control practices in recognition of the
         CORPORATION'S  Use technology as  practices  in their 	
         plant,  so as  to produce and  offer the  recovered PRODUCT for
         sale in a form and to the required  Specification,  useable in
         the plant with minimum  alterations  to  present  processing
         technology  and buisiness practices, and

     (2)  to require,  should a contract be effected  as a  result  of  the
         Advance Letter of Intent,  that the  PRODUCE be  delivered
         to the  CORPORATION according to  conditions and  prices  determined
         herein  and  not diverted to a spot market which  may on  occasion
         be higher  than the Exchange Price determined  by the pricing
         relationship set forth  here  or as modified by the  Contract.

     (3)  that should the CORPORATION'S plant, as specified  herein,
         become  saturated in its ability to  handle  the  recovered
         PRODUCT as  a result of other Letters of Intent issued  by
          the CORPORATION being converted into firm  contracts for
         delivery  and purchase prior to effecting such  arrangements
         as a result of this commitment,  the provisions of  this
         Advance Letter of Intent become null and void.

     The CORPORATION  will communicate to the DEVELOPMENT AGENCY  that
information about its use technology and business practices  which the
CORPORATION at its  sole discretion shall consider necessary  so as to
assure receipt of the recovered material in form and cleanliness
necessary for use by the CORPORATION.   Such communication shall  be  on
a nonconfidential  basis, unless otherwise subject to a  confidentiality
agreement.
                                      44

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     This Advance Letter of Intent shall become null and void on
           unless effected into a contractual relationship or mutually
extended by both the CORPORATION and DEVELOPMENT AGENCY.

Witnessed by:                        DEVELOPMENT AGENCY

	          By:	
                                     CORPORATION
Witnessed by:
                                     45

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                              REFERENCES


1.    U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Solid Waste
     Management Programs.  Resource recovery and waste reduction;
     third report to Congress.  Environmental Protection Publication
     SW-161.  Washington, U.S. Government Printing Office, 1975.
     96 p.
                                  K
2.    Desy, D. H.  Iron and steel scrap; preprint from the 1973 bureau
     of Mines mineral yearbook.  Washington, U.S. Government Printing
     Office, 1973.  13 p.
                            t
3.    Howard, S. E.  Locations of markets for recovered materials.
     Washington, U.S.  Environmental Protection Agency.   (In preparation).

4.    Darnay, A., and W.  E. Franklin.  Salvage markets for materials
     in  solid wastes.  Environmental  Protection Publication SW-29c.
     Washington, U.S.  Government Printing Office, 1972.  187 p.
                                                                     i
5.    Identification of opportunities  for increased recycling of ferrous
     solid waste.  W.  J.  Regan, R. W. James, and T. J. McLeer.  U.S.
     Environmental Protection Agency, 1972.  391 p.   (Distributed by
     National Technical  Information Service, Springfield, Va., as PB-213 577).

6.   Alter,  H.  and W.  R.  Reeves.   Specifications for materials recovered
     from municipal refuse.   Cincinnati, U.S. Environmental Protection
     Agency, National  Environmental Research Center, May 1975.  110  p.
     (Distributed by National Technical  Information Service, Springfield,
     Va., as PB-242 540).

7.   SCS Engineers.  Analysis of source  separate collection of recyclable
     solid waste; collection  center studies.  (V.I.)  Environmental
     Protection Publication SW-95c.2.  U.S.  Environmental Protection
     Agency, 1974.   (75  p.)   (Distributed by National Technical
     Information  Service,  Springfield, Va.,  as PB-239 776).

     SCS Engineers.  Analysis of source  separate collection of recyclable
     solid  waste; separate collection studies.  (V.II.)  Environmental
     Protection Publication SW-95c.l.  U.S.  ENvironmental Protection Agency,
     1974.   (157  p.)   (Distributed by National Technical Information
     Service,  Springfield, Va., as PB-239 775.)

8.   Hansen, P.  Residential  paper recovery; a municipal implementation guide,
     Environmental  Protection Publication SW-155.   (Washington), U.S.
     Environmental  Protection Agency, 1975.  26 p.
                                 46

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9.   Lingle, S.  Separating paper at the waste source for recycling.
     Environmental Protection Publication SW-128.  Washington, U.S.
     Government Printing Office, 1974.  16 p.

10.  Lingle, S. A.  Paper recycling in the United States.  Waste Age,
     5(8):6-8,10, Nov. 1974.

11.  Paper stock standards and practices.  Circular PS-74.  New York
     Paper Stock Institute of America, January 1, 1974.  8 p.

12.  Tunnah, B. G., A. Hakki, and R. J. Leonard (Gordian Associates,  Inc.)
     Where the boilers are; a survey of electric utility boilers
     with potential capacity for burning solid waste as fuel.
     Environmental Protection Publication SW-88c.  U.S. Environmental
     Protection Agency, 1974.  329 p.  (Distributed by National Technical
     Information Service, Springfield, Va., as PB-239 392.)
yallSOgR

Order No. 499
                                 47

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                          EPA  REGIONS
U.S. EPA, Region 1
Solid Waste Program
John F. Kennedy Bldg.
Boston, MA 02203
617-223-5775

U.S. EPA, Region 2
Solid Waste Section
26 Federal Plaza
New York, NY 10007
212-264-0503

U.S. EPA,. Region 3
Solid Waste Program
6th and Walnut Sts.
Philadelphia, PA 19106
215-597-9377

U.S. EPA, Region 4
Solid Waste Program
345 Courtland St., N.E.
Altanta, GA 30308
404-881-3016
U.S. EPA, Region 5
Solid Waste Program
230 South Dearborn St.
Chicago, IL 60604
312-353-2197

U.S. EPA, Region 6
Solid Waste Section
1201 Elm St.
Dallas, TX 75270
214-767-2734

U.S. EPA, Region 7
Solid Waste Section
1735 Baltimore Ave.
Kansas City,'MO 64108
816-374-3307
U.S. EPA, Region 8
Solid Waste Section
1860 Lincoln St.
Denver, CO 80295
303-837-2221

U.S. EPA, Region 9
Solid Waste Program
215 Fremont St.
San Francisco, CA 94105
415-556-4606

U.S. EPA, Region 10
Solid Waste Program
1200 6th Ave.
Seattle, WA 98101
206-442-1260

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