Melting Organics Waste ‐
Seeing Waste Diversion Value in Ice Cream
Colorado Summit for Recycling ‐ 2011
JD Lindeberg, President and CFO
OVERVIEW
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Project Objectives
Background
Data Collection
Internal/External Ice Cream Collection
Waste Diversion Options
Business Case Summary
Recommendations
PROJECT OBJECTIVES
• Identify waste diversion options through recycling and organics management and potential savings for a midwest ice cream facility
• Reduce the waste water treatment plant surcharges for high BOD process water
• Identify potential end users of ice cream waste
• Provide recommendations for other recycling opportunities
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
• Midwest ice cream facility
– Facility operates 24/7
– Produce 1.5 quart size containers of ice cream
– Facility size – 275,000 square foot
• Overall facility goals
– Achieve zero waste operation
– Full recovery of unavoidable by‐products
– Eliminate waste sent to landfills
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
• Facility FY09 facts
– Reduced waste by 11.4%
– Increased reuse/recovery by‐products by 23.5%
– Spent $226,511 on waste disposal
• Not including City utility surcharges
– Offset/recycling savings totaled $77,615
FACILITY RECYCLING
• Currently recycling following materials
– 100% of cardboard and cores
– 100% of metal scraps
– 99% of wood pallet waste
– 90% of fiber ingredient bags
– 50% of plastic film
WASTE WATER TREATMENT PLANT
• Waste water treatment plant issues
– High levels of BOD in process water
• Melted ice cream waste discharged to sewer
– Annual surcharges over $1 million, even though WWTP has a wet AD system and wants BOD
ICE CREAM WASTE GENERATION
• Generated from areas on manufacturing line
– Majority from filling and quality check areas
– Process line malfunctions
– Line shutdowns due to flavor change‐overs
• Ice cream in lines is dumped
– Quality check points
• Container/wrapper not properly aligned or sealed
• Container removed from line and disposed
ICE CREAM WASTE DESTINATION
• Waste from filing, line malfunctions and flavor change‐overs
– Dumped directly into drains
– Transported to WWTP
• Waste from container/wrapper check points
– Collected in gray tip carts
– Ice cream waste mixed with containers/wrappers
– Transported to external compactors
– Ice cream melts & allows drain out of compactor ICE CREAM WASTE DIVERSION
• Overall waste diversion strategy
– Divert some liquid ice cream waste from WWTP
– Evaluate possible alternative end users
• Hog farmers
• Anaerobic digesters
• Compost sites
ORGANICS MGMT HIERARCHY
ANIMAL FEED
• Ice cream waste not consumable to humans
• Next best options – animal feed
• Nutrient and energy content dictates use
– Hog farmers
INDUSTRIAL USE
• Anaerobic digestion
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Potential to break down waste
55‐65% methane produced for biogas
Ability to generate electricity and heat
Residuals from process are composted
• Availability
– Closest location – 200 miles
– Potential at WWTP – but at a high cost
COMPOSTING
• Composting potential
– Process requires minimum moisture content
– Ice cream waste could replace water requirement
– Ice cream nitrogen content improve compost product
• Availability
– Storage tanks needed to store waste
– Unable to locate site permitted to take waste
– Costs to upgrade site for industrial food residuals is cost prohibitive
PROBLEM DEFINITION ‐ INTERNAL
• Quality control areas
– Waste collected in large trash cans
– Pumped into totes and then tanker truck
– Transported to WWTP AD pit
– Assume two 1 cubic yard totes filled each day
– Assume 1 ton generated from totes
PROBLEM DEFINITION ‐ INTERNAL
• Filling and processing areas
– Waste collected in “grey whales”
• 1.5 cubic yard tipcarts
• Located throughout process floor
– 35% full when dumped
– Assume 10.5 tons generated
PROBLEM DEFINTION ‐ EXTERNAL
• External waste collection
– 2 waste compactors on site
– 35 cubic yards capacity
– Pulled 7 days a week
– Each contain 8 tons of material
– Estimate 75% of weight is ice cream waste
SOLUTION DEVELOPMENT
• Compactors 75% ice cream waste
– Approximately 12 tons daily from both units
• Assume potential capture rate is 75%, so 9 tons daily could be drained from compactors
• Required to be pumped into refrigerated stainless storage tanks
• Stored until delivered to end user
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SOLUTION DEVELOPMENT ‐
RECYCLING
Total compacted waste – 16 tons
– 12 tons ice cream waste
– Remaining 4 tons organic waste:
• Waxed half gallon containers
• Plastic cone wrappers
– If separation occurs – composting could occur
• 1 compactor – soiled ice cream containers
• 1 compactor – soiled cone wrappers/other non‐recyclable plastics
SOLUTION DEVELOPMENT ‐
RECYCLING
• Wood pallet recycling
– 2 roll‐off containers per week
– Estimate 288 pallets each week
– 0.76 tons of pallets recycled daily
RECYCLING SAVINGS
Current landfill diversion savings of $330 per day
Item
Unit
Unit Cost
Total Cost Per Day
41 pallets/day
$2.25/pallet
$92.57
Ice Cream Containers
1 ton/day
$25/ton
$25.00
Cardboard
2.93 tons/day
$65/ton
$190.67
Plastic Films
0.07 tons/day
$300/ton
$21.67
Pallets
TOTAL
$329.91
COST AND PRICING DATA
• Needed capital expenditures
– 6 wheeled “Grey Whale” tip carts
• $600 each
– 2 refrigerated stainless steel storage tanks
• 20,000 gallon
• $87,400
• Includes tank, freight and 30% contingency
COST AND PRICING DATA
• Needed capital expenditures
– Replacement of rented 35 cy self‐contained compactor
• $50,000 for new unit
• Includes cart tipper and 20% contingency
– Purchase dechiming machine
• Removes metal bands from fiber drums
• $1,200 for a manual machine
• $26,000 for automated machine
DECHIMING MACHINES
CAPITAL COST SUMMARY
Item
Units
$/Unit
Total
Tip Carts
6
$600
$3,600
Refrigerated Storage Tank
2
$32,500
$65,000
Storage Tank Valves
2
$2,000
$4,000
Storage Tank Freight
2
$3,500
$7,000
30%
$38,000
$11,400
Fiber Drum Dechiming Machine 1
$26,000
$26,000
35 CY Compactor
1
$42,000
$42,000
20%
$42,000
$8,000
Storage Tank Contingency
Compactor Contingency
TOTAL
$167,000
ICE CREAM WASTE UNIT COSTS
• Ice cream waste hauled for $0.09‐$0.12/gallon for hog feed
– 2,167,200 gal per year = $260,000/yr
– High strength and high purity
• Estimated density 4.8 pounds/gallon
Material
Liquid Ice Cream Waste
Unit Cost to Landfill ($/Ton)
Unit Cost to Hog Farm
($/Ton)
$39
$37.5 ‐ $50
CURRENT DISPOSAL COSTS
• Landfilling/dumping all liquid wastes
– $809/day dispose of waste
– $3,836/day to dump ice cream down the drain
– Total $4,645/day
COST SAVINGS
• If able to cut WWTP surcharges in half
• Continue recycling at current level, add de‐
chimer and recycle metal bands
• Divert 10.5 tons/day of ice cream waste
• Divert 3 tons/day of contaminated ice cream containers
• Save $1,000/day in operations
• ROI = less than 1 year
ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFIT
per year
Equivalent to taking 304 cars off the road EPA WAste Reduction Model ‐‐http://www.epa.gov/climatechange/wycd/waste/calculators/Warm_home.html
REVIEW OF BENEFITS
• Facility is closer to achieving goals for zero waste landfilled and full recovery of unavoidable byproducts
• Reduce surcharges to the WWTP by diverting waste ice cream to beneficial reuse
• Reduce volume to the landfill by diverting waste ice cream cones and their paper and plastic packaging to beneficial reuse and recycling
• Manage and continuously improve overall plant re‐use and recycling of raw material packaging
FINAL RECOMMENDATIONS
• Negotiation with WWTP to reduce surcharge
• Continue discussions with ice cream waste end users
• Purchase – Additional tip carts for inside facility
– 2 refrigerated tanks for ice cream storage
– Dechiming machine
• Work with broker/resource manager to negotiate contracts and maximize diversion from landfill
LESSONS LEARNED
• Corporate Goals often Overrun Plant goals
– Chose cheaper vendor
– Low Tech Operation
• Capital Cost Expenditure can be a Problem
• Need to Give Customer Lower Risk Option
– Consider financing tools
– Articulate a more sophisticated view of “Risk”
QUESTIONS/DISCUSSION
Thank you for your time and attention!
JD Lindeberg, PE
President and CFO
Resource Recycling Systems, Inc.
734‐646‐3303 (cell)
734‐996‐1361 x 241(office)
[email protected]
www.recycle.com