Assessment of Bacteria and Virus Emissions at a Refuse-Derived Fuel Plant and Other Waste-Handling Facilities

摘要

The results of work carried out by Midwest Research Institute for the Environmental Protection Agency to determine relative levels of bacteria are presented in order to compare these levels at the St. Louis Refuse Processing Plant with those at four other types of waste handling facilities (i.e., an incinerator, a waste transfer station, a wastewater treatment plant, and a landfill). This work also included testing to determine bacterial removal efficiency of the Environmental Protection Agency mobile fabric filter (baghouse) operating on a slipstream drawoff of the exhaust duct from the air classifier at the St. Louis Refuse Processing Plant. The results showed that airborne bacterial levels, both in plant and at the property line, are generally higher for the refuse processing plant than for the other types of waste handling facilities that were tested. A fabric filter system applied to a primary source of dust emission (the air density separation exhaust) at the refuse derived fuel plant can significantly reduce particulate bacteria emissions.