IMPLEMENTATION OF ADVANCED CD DEBRIS RECYCLING SYSTEM: A YEAR IN REVIEW

摘要

The St. Lucie County (SLC) Solid Waste Department has recently implemented a construction and demolition (C&D) debris processing facility at their Baling and Recycling Facility located in Fort Pierce, Florida. In recent years, the rate of population growth in SLC has been dramatic. The unprecedented growth rate, coupled with major hurricane events, has substantially increased C&D debris generation routed to the Baling and Recycling Facility, which has rapidly consumed the C&D debris landfill airspace. This state-of-the-art facility utilizes screens, conveyors, an air separator, manual sorting stations, and a rotary shear grinder to process and recover recyclable materials from the incoming C&D debris wastestream. The implementation of this advanced C&D debris recycling system has not only provided financial benefits to the SLC Solid Waste Department, it has also helped divert recyclable materials from the C&D debris landfill, delaying the need for acquiring a new site. Construction of the C&D debris processing facility began in December 2003, with full startup accomplished in July 2004. Recyclable items include gravel, concrete, wood, metal, drywall, and fill material. The facility utilizes mechanical and manual separation processes. The waste sorted at the manual picking stations can be modified according to composition of incoming waste and/or changes to potential markets. Wastes not separated or sorted out are processed through a grinder and disposed of in the C&D debris landfill or used as cover material. This paper will present 1 year of operational data analysis and the economical benefits of operating a C&D debris recycling system. Established and potential markets for the recovered materials will also be discussed.