1. 1001 South 4th Avenue
Laurel, MS 39441
601-649-6000
Rebecca M. Morgan
Environmental
Specialist
2. •In Masonite’s efforts to reduce the amount of waste being placed in
landfills we began exploring opportunities to reduce, re-use, or recycle.
•One of our waste streams, ash and de-watered fiber, immediately
became a topic of interest.
•We generate on the average of 500 tons per week of this waste
material. So reducing this amount would not only save money but
drastically reduce our landfill waste.
3. • The ash and de-watered fiber are generated independently of each other
and have been mixed together in the past for easier shipping to the
disposal facility.
• The ash is generated from the two (2) wood burning boilers that Masonite
uses to produce steam.
• The fiber is generated by clarifying our process water before that water is
sent back into the system to be re-used.
5. • Until 2006 Masonite had several on-site landfills where this material was
disposed.
• During the course of that year we began closing these landfills and going all
off site to a local facility for disposal.
• After going off-site for nearly two years, we started to explore a permanent
beneficial use for this waste stream to offset some of the cost of disposal
and to reduce the amount of waste being sent to landfills.
6.
7. • Knowing the results we had with our closures we had a great starting point.
• After reviewing possible uses of this material we wanted to explore a public
give-away program that would benefit the local area and regional farmers.
• Our final goal was to offer a material to the public that would provide a cost
effective alternative to what they were already purchasing.
• In mid 2007 we employed the services of Eco-Systems, Inc of Jackson, MS
to assist with this project and to explore what options were available.
8. • After sharing historic information with Eco-Systems and discussing with
them what we would like to accomplish the project began the extensive
testing phase.
• Samples were taken over the course of several weeks. These samples were
taken on both boilers to cover all elements of the process.
• Historic analytical from the landfill closure project was compared to the new
analytical to provide process stability.
• Once the analytical was completed Eco-Systems, Inc. prepared three
Beneficial Use Applications to the Mississippi Department of Environmental
Quality.
9. • Application #1 was for the boiler ash as a liming agent.
• Application #2 was for the de-watered fiber as a landscaping soil
amendment.
• Application #3 was for the combination material (ash and de-watered fiber
mixed) as a landscaping soil amendment.
• Approval has been granted on Application #1 and #2 with pending approval
on Application #3.
10. • The last phase to this project is to have dewatered fiber approved for
agricultural use. Such as being added to farming soil to improve organics
that are lost over years of harvesting, soil depletion, and erosion.
• In order to provide local farmers with beneficial information as to best
application techniques of this material, Masonite will conduct a
demonstration project in conjunction with the MDEQ.
• This trial will be monitored by the MDEQ. Our end results will provide local
farmers with more information as to how to obtain the best results with this
material.
• This material has also been approved by the MDEQ to be used as daily
landfill cover at a local disposal facility.
11. ASH
• Liming agent
• Alternative Cover
• Combined with De-watered fiber
as a soil amendment*
De-Watered Fiber
• Landscaping amendment
• Alternative Cover
• Combined with Ash as a soil
amendment*
• Agricultural soil amendment based
on results of demonstration project
* Pending approval
Editor's Notes
Thank you! As _________ said, I am Rebecca Morgan. I am an Environmental Specialist with Masonite Corporation. I have been asked to share a little with you today about a recent Beneficial Use Project we have been working on.
This material is our largest waste stream so it was definitely an interest for cost reduction.
The ash and de-watered fiber are generated at two different areas at our mill and have always been mixed together for easier shipping to the disposal facility.
The steam produced from these boilers is used to help run our mill.
Here are some pictures to show a little of what our materials look like. Unfortunately, the lighting conditions inside the de-watered fiber bunker didn’t allow for a great picture. However, the de-watered fiber is as aesthetically pleasing to look at as it is nutrient rich.
***And since the material was already available to us we applied to the MDEQ and received permission to use this material as to aid in our closure process.
These are some pictures of on-site closures where we have used this material
The analytical showed us that our boiler ash has a CCE or Calcium Carbonate Equivalent of 50% while our De-Watered fiber is 80% organic with nutrient values that include Nitrogen, ammonia, and phosporous.
In Summary you can see here a break down of the approved uses for these materials. We are very excited about this project and expect continued success through out the year.
