Monitoring of The Eco-co-combustion Pilot Plant

Introduction

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During operation of the Eco-co-combustion Pilot Plant, on-site exhaust gas emission and off-site air quality was closely monitored. The Hong Kong Productivity Council has been commissioned to be the Independent Consultant on the project ("the Independent Consultant"), which had appointed the Hong Kong Baptist University to perform the sample analysis. 

Two off-site stations were established in the Tuen Mun district located in Butterfly Estate and Lung Kwu Tan Village for baseline monitoring of ambient air quality.  The parameters to be monitored include total suspended particulates (TSP), respirable suspended particulates (RSP), nitrogen dioxide (NO₂), sulphur dioxide (SO₂), dioxins and heavy metals. The operation of these two monitoring stations was started in December 2004 and continued to operate until one month after the pilot plant was shutdown.

Emisssion monitoring equipment was also installed in the chimney of the pilot plant for the continuous monitoring of the exhaust gas emission. Total organic carbon (TOC), hydrogen chloride (HCl), hydrogen fluoride (HF), sulphur dioxide (SO₂), nitrogen oxides (NO_x), carbon monoxide (CO) and opacity were closely monitored.

For dioxins and heavy metals, measurements were collected on a periodic basis (please refer to the sampling frequency in the later part of this web page) by the Independent Consultant.  All results for on-site continuous emission (normal operation) were published on this web page within three working days while the monitoring results for off-site periodic measurement were published within three working days upon receipt of verified reports from the Independent Consultant.

(2) On-site continuous emission monitoring (CEM) includes the measurement of total organic carbon (TOC), hydrogen chloride (HCl), hydrogen fluoride (HF), sulphur dioxide (SO₂), nitrogen oxides (NO_x), carbon monoxide (CO) and opacity. This data was collected by the devices installed in the chimney.

(3) On-site periodic monitoring includes the measurement of dioxins and heavy metals. This data was provided by the Independent Consultant. 

 Sampling frequency for the off-site monitoring parameters:

Approval from EPD

Subsequent to the successful load commissioning trials, the Environmental Protection Department has agreed to the use of the pilot plant for a limited period during which the company analysed recovery and recycling as well as the disposal of non-recyclable materials. The operating scale, including both duration and volume of waste being handled remained the same as originally planned.

Renewal of License

As the original Specified Process (SP) license expired before the completion of the pilot projects, an application for renewal of the license was submitted to the Environmental Protection Department so as to complete the plant testing of the technology. There was no increase in either the 16-week cumulative operating time of the pilot plant or the volume of waste being handled (not more than 24 tonnes per day).

Note: The SP license was renewed effective from 25^th November 2005 and expired on the 24^th November 2007 under the same terms and conditions of operation as before. As the project is completed, there will be no further renewal.

Status of Pilot Plant Operation

The pilot plant project has completed its research objective and the pilot plant operation was closed down on 17th December 2005.

Decommissioning of the Pilot Plant

The decommissioning of the pilot plant is a Designated Project (DP) as it is included in the category of projects which requires an Environmental Permit (EP) for decommissioning under the Environmental Impact Assessment Ordinance (EIAO Cap.499).

The decommissioning process for the pilot plant was started with the preparation and submission of a Project Profile (PP) to the Environmental Protection Department (EPD) in accordance with the guidelines under the EIAO. Following review and public consultation on the PP, the EPD has issued an Environmental Impact Assessment Study Brief (EIA-SB). An EIA report conforming to the requirements of the EIA-SB was prepared for submission to EPD to obtain an EP for decommissioning of the pilot plant.

As part of the EP application process, a Contamination Assessment Plan (CAP) has to be approved by the EPD. Accordingly, a CAP was prepared and submitted to EPD for review and comments. The CAP was approved by the EPD on 29 January 2008 and Site Investigation (SI) work was carried out in compliance with the regulatory requirements.

After completion of the SI work, a Contamination Assessment Report (CAR) was compiled and presented to EPD and approval was received on 27 May 2008.

A demolition permit from the Buildings Department (BD) is also required for the decommissioning of the pilot plant. A Demolition Plan was prepared in co-operation with the building consultant and an application for approval of the Demolition Plan was submitted to the BD on 20 January 2009. The Demolition Plan was approved by the BD on 13 March 2009.

Work was continued on the EIA in co-operation with the environmental consultant and after a series of studies and evaluation the EIA report was submitted to the EPD on 20 March 2009. Following further amendments as required by the EPD and consultation, advice was received from the EPD on 4 May 2009 that the EIA report is suitable for public inspection. The EIA report was made available for public inspection from 15 May 2009 to 13 June 2009.

After the public inspection period, the EIA report for the demolition of the pilot plant at Tap Shek Kok was approved by EPD on 23 June 2009.

The EP for the demolition project was issued by EPD on 24 June 2009.

Both the approved EIA report and EP issued is placed on the EIA Ordinance Website (http://www.epd.gov.hk/eia).

Current Status of the Pilot Plant

Subsequent to the approval of the EIA report and issue of the EP, preliminary activities for the decommissioning of the pilot plant were started.

Tenders were called for the demolition works from potential contractors on the list of Registered Specialist Contractors (Demolition Works) maintained by the BD. The tender was awarded on 24 July 2009.

The demolition procedure as prescribed by the BD was followed with submission of a Site Supervision Plan with supporting documents followed by an application on 11 August 2009 for consent to the carrying out of the demolition works.

Precautionary measures as required by the BD including erection of hoarding and barriers on the demolition site were carried out.

Consent to the commencement and carrying out of the works was given by the BD on 8 September 2009.

The decommissioning of the pilot plant commenced on 15 September 2009 and the demolition works were conducted in compliance with regulatory guidelines and the terms and conditions including the mitigation measures prescribed in the EIA Report and EP.

Practical completion of the demolition works was reached on 7 December 2009 according to schedule.

Contacts

For any enquiries on the project or the monitoring reports, please contact:

Mr. Michael Wong
Telephone No: (852) 2440 5209
Fax No: (852) 2441 3421
Email: michaelw@gich.com.hk