Jeopardy question: What is the best way to thaw frozen chocolate?
Chocolate enthusiasts know this and will learn much more at the RETA 2017 National Conference in, where else, Hershey, PA.
The 2017 conference is offering attendees a truly robust program full of a variety of topics, including Technical Sessions in the areas of Compliance, Engineering, Manufacturing & Operations. Hands-On sessions will also be available, as well as Manufacturer Specific Sessions.
SCS Tracer will be welcoming attendees at booth 610, sponsoring Refrigeration Jeopardy, while providing advice and help as they always have. Play Crack the Code and win prizes during the conference. Visit the booth and SCS sessions for hints.
Details here
These guys don’t want to miss Resource Management and Waste Diversion: Evaluating the Impact on Waste Management caused by the Changing Waste Stream Composition at WasteCon/ISWA 2017.
Solid waste management, and in particular sanitary landfilling, is being impacted by the waste composition evolution. One notable change is an overall decrease in tonnage. Reasons for the reduced quantity may be attributed to factors such as increased diversion of recyclables, increased diversion of vegetative organics, evolving diversion of food waste, changes to packaging, expansion of fresh organic foods lifestyle, expansion of fitness lifestyles, as well as other generational life choices.
Learn more about this topic and many others at the ISWA/WasteCon conference in Baltimore, MD.
Your facility will need a Qualified Industrial Stormwater Practioner (QISP) to perform an ERA Level 1 Assessment, on or before October 1, 2017, and follow up with an ERA Level 1 Technical Report by January 1, 2018, or as soon as is practicable. We recommend that this assessment and report be performed prior to the wet season of the 2017-18 permit cycle year, to assist dischargers in reviewing their minimum required BMPs and if needed, implement additional BMPs.
Review your ERA Level 1 Action Plan now. Is it correct given the additional NAL exceedances? You should review all items needed for a successful ERA Level 2 Action Plan and Technical Report to successfully reduce and/or eliminate pollutants of concern in stormwater discharge.
Your facility is required to submit an ERA Level 2 Action Plan, prepared by a QISP, which addresses each Level 2 NAL exceedance via SMARTs. This Action Plan must identify which of the three options below (or a combination thereof) of demonstration(s) the Discharger has selected to perform:
The State Water Board acknowledges that there may be cases where a combination of the demonstrations may be appropriate; therefore a Discharger may combine any of the three demonstration options in their Level 2 ERA Technical Report, when appropriate.
It is important to note that Level 2 is a serious situation under the IGP and you should start working immediately on your stormwater management goals for the ERA Level 2 Action Plan, which is due by January 1, 2018. For the BMP demonstration option, Dischargers may have to implement additional BMPs, which may include physical, structural, or mechanical devices that will reduce and/or eliminate pollutants in stormwater discharge.
The ERA Level 2 Technical Report, which summarizes the option(s) chosen and all relevant technical information, including design storm standards for treatment control BMPs, must be overseen and signed by a California Professional Engineer (PE) and submitted by January 1st, 2019.
Get help now by contacting an SCS Stormwater Professional near you.
SCS Engineers presents a behind-the-scenes look at the special people who make us thrive and the roles they play within the organization.
When Adrienne was young, she always dreamed of a career that combined three subjects she enjoyed: math, science, and the environment. She wanted a job where she could be outside and that will be a positive impact on nature. That thinking is how Adrienne became a Geological Engineering major at the University of Wisconsin – Madison. As a senior, Adrienne wished to find an internship that would give her a real world view into the engineering consulting world. She first learned of the internship opportunity at the SCS Madison office from a previous summer intern who described his great experience. When she was offered the position, Adrienne did not hesitate to accept.
During her summer as an intern, Adrienne worked on a variety of projects, both in the office and the field. Her projects ranged many topics in solid waste including landfill gas, landfill monitoring, and slope stability. On her work during the summer, Adrienne comments, “I got to see a variety, both office work, and field work. The people at SCS were always willing to take time to talk to me and make me feel included. They were always willing to answer any questions I had and help me out.”
For any future SCS interns, she gives this advice: “Definitely take the job if it offered to you, it was such a great learning experience. This internship taught me time management skills with the ups and downs of a consultant’s schedule. Also, take the time to communicate with everybody you can. It helps to sit in on meetings and learn the projects everybody is working on. Take the time to get to know people’s specialties.”
Adrienne will be presenting at the University of Madison – Wisconsin’s Geological, Mining, and Geotechnical Engineering 2nd Technical Conference and Alumni Reunion held on September 13-15, 2017. Her topic will be on a subject she spent many hours working on during her SCS internship: slope stability in landfills. SCS is one of the sponsors of this event and will have more employees attending as well.
During her final semester, Adrienne will continue to work at the SCS Madison office part time. After she graduates, she hopes to stay in the solid waste and geotechnical consulting field.
Outside of school and work, Adrienne enjoys playing the trumpet at the University of Wisconsin – Madison’s marching band, playing ultimate Frisbee, hiking, and biking.
This summer, SCS had seven interns across the country and next year we are looking to grow our National Internship Program. We will start hiring for our Summer 2018 internships in January.
To learn more about a career at SCS Engineers, please visit the SCS Careers page.
The past few decades of advancements in developing new drainage media have led to the use of geocomposites as the primary drainage layer above the bottom lining system geomembrane. However, you need to be watchful for the free flow of leachate through the thin layer of geocomposite under high gas pressures near the bottom lining system.
Short of investigations and clear guidelines for addressing high gas pressure near the bottom lining system, you can use a gas pressure relief system near the bottom in future new disposal cells. The pressure relief system can simply include a few perforated high-density polyethylene pipes laid in parallel directly above the soil layer placed above the bottom lining system drainage layer, as shown in the schematic.
About the author: Dr. Ali Khatami
Landfill Leachate Management Services
In this day and age, a back office customer information software system is a “must” for solid waste agencies managing inventories, work orders, and large numbers of customers.
However, many solid waste agencies have inadequate computer hardware and software systems to enable tracking of work productivity and customer service. Oftentimes, many use a combination of an Excel-based software system and manual card systems to track residential and commercial accounts. To the world of business operations, these manual systems are analogous to a stone and chisel versus a typewriter.
There are a wide variety of management information and software products used by solid waste agencies across the U.S. Each has its particular advocates and uses in the solid waste management practice. This article will provide an overview of the major trends in software development.
About the authors: Marc J Rogoff, Ph.D. and Laurel C. Urena, M.S.
As authorized by the WIIN Act, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued interim final guidance to help states develop their own permitting programs to manage coal combustion residuals – also known as coal ash.
The guidance instructs states on how they can apply to EPA to implement the federal CCR rule and outlines what thresholds states must meet to demonstrate their programs are as protective as federal requirements. The guidance also offers examples of regulatory flexibilities that could meet EPA approval and indicates that states can propose other flexibilities in addition to those specifically identified.
EPA will accept public comments on the guidance through September 14, 2017. To submit your comments, go to Regulations.gov, search for docket number EPA-HQ-OLEM-2017-0458 and follow the online instructions for submitting comments. EPA anticipates that this guidance is likely to be updated as informed by comments received on this interim final guidance and will respond to these comments as appropriate.
For questions and help managing your coal ash in compliance with CCR regulations contact:
Mike McLaughlin, PE, Senior Vice President
Eric Nelson, PE, Vice President
Steve Lamb, PE, Vice President
Kevin Yard, PE, Vice President
Or, contact your local SCS Engineers office .
Landfill odors have impacts beyond landfill boundaries and are a nuisance to people in the landfill vicinity. Landfills located near or adjacent to residential and commercial neighborhoods, including those near industrial areas, get complaints from citizens, businesses, and regulatory agencies no matter how vigilant the operator is about controlling odors. Properly controlling odors at municipal solid waste landfills is a challenge that landfill operators deal with on a daily basis.
We are keenly aware that the means of masking, neutralizing, controlling, or eliminating odors are cumbersome and expensive. A privately operated regional landfill located in a high-profile urban area found an effective and cost-efficient solution to their odor problem. The term pin wells was coined by the landfill engineers who created and used the methodology. The pin wells proved their usefulness, resulting in dramatic, positive results with respect to effectively controlling odors from newly-placed waste.
As many as 20 wells can be installed in one day at a minimal cost. A 20-ft long, 3-inch diameter solid rod, which is similar to carpet poles or the poles used by geosynthetics installers to move rolls of materials, is pushed into the fresh waste placed in the disposal cell to open a vertical, narrow opening in waste. A 1-inch diameter, perforated PVC pipe is inserted into the hole and sand is placed in the annulus space between the pipe and the boring walls. The top of the pipe is connected via temporary laterals to a vacuum source, typically the existing landfill gas collection system. Care is needed to place just enough suction on the pin wells to control odors but not create significant air intrusion into the gas collection system, which could impact the flare or end-use, if in place. The spacing of the pin wells is decided by the operator and depends on what level of effort is needed to control off-site odors.
Pin wells may be installed at the top surface of a new waste lift until the next lift is placed. When the time comes to cover the previous lift with a new lift, the temporary pin wells are removed, and waste is pushed over. New temporary pin wells go in after the next lift is formed. Pin wells may be considered exempt from routine monitoring; the operator will need to check with the local state regulatory agency to obtain confirmation of state and local policy.
Pin wells may be the innovative and inexpensive odor control solution that could work for you too.
Ask the author a question: Dr. Ali Khatami
More about stopping landfill odors.
Removing biological growth in landfill leachate collection pipes is an important maintenance measure to keep the pipes in operable condition. High-pressure jet cleaning of the pipes on a regular schedule is performed in accordance with best practices and regulatory policy. For example, in Florida, solid waste rules require leachate collection pipes to be either jet cleaned every five years or videoed to confirm that the pipes are in operational condition. Of course, if the video shows that cleaning is necessary, the operator performs the maintenance and submits a report to the appropriate agency.
The spent jetting liquids contain a mix of calcite and microorganisms that have been removed from pipe walls and perforations. The liquid mixture flows to the lowest point in the pipe and enters the sump medium, which is typically composed of one to three-inch size rock. A drawback of jet cleaning is that when the pipes are cleaned, the spent jetting liquids enter the sump medium, thereby using essential leachate storage space in the sump. The calcite and microorganisms that were removed from the leachate piping are now present in the sump and will reduce the sump capacity and cause bottlenecks within the perforations in the riser pipe(s). Over time, this buildup will prevent the flow of leachate in the sump into the riser pipe. Without flow into the riser pipe, leachate removal from the sump becomes impossible, causing expensive operations and compliance issues for the landfill operator.
Clogging of the sump medium is a slow process; many sumps do not show indication of the impact of buildup for years. Landfill operators typically don’t use jet cleaning equipment equipped with vacuum features to remove the spent liquids from the pipe during cleaning. SCS recommends that this potential issue is discussed with the cleaning contractor in advance to account for the problems that can occur. For shallow landfills, contractors could provide a vacuum line inserted into the cleanout riser to remove the spent liquids as the pipe is cleaned. For deep landfills, the cleaning contractor can provide a temporary pump inserted inside the riser to remove the spent liquids.
To prevent excessive biological growth, jet cleaning of the riser pipes every time the leachate collection pipes are cleaned will significantly reduce clogging of the riser pipe perforations. Unmaintained riser pipes block leachate from entering the riser, preventing liquid removal and causing compliance issues when found.
Ask the author a question: Dr. Ali Khatama
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