Ecology Center — Newsletter

The Central Wayne Trash Incinerator was finally shut down in late August, perhaps for good, after years of failing to pay back investors. Located in Dearborn Heights, the facility burned all the trash of the Central Wayne County Sanitation Authority (CWCSA) member communities of Dearborn Heights, Garden City, Inkster, Wayne, and Westland. The closure of the facility was not a surprise to the CWCSA board, environmental organizations, and some residents who have watched the financial fiasco unfold. However the abruptness of the closure did take some off guard.

In 1998 the facility was converted from a trash burner to a “Waste-to-Energy” facility at a cost of $105 million. The current owner of the facility, Central Wayne Energy Recovery Limited Partnership (CWERLP), put up $20 million, a state of Michigan SWAP grant provided $5 million, and $80 million was raised in bonds.

The bonds were issued as tax-free from the Michigan Strategic Fund (MSF) to support what was touted as an economic development project. The investors who bought the bonds have not received a single payment from CWERLP. In August the bondholders officially declared CWERLP to have defaulted on the bonds, suspended operations, and started looking for a new operator. Part of the reason the incinerator could not operate profitably is because landfill prices are so low. Ironically, the Engler administration also supported the use of MSF bonds for the expansion of landfills. State officials should investigate at least the wisdom of the SWAP grant and the MSF bonds.

Currently none of the five cities in the CWCSA have a comprehensive curbside recycling program. If residents want to dispose of their trash responsibly they have to pay extra to subscribe to a limited curbside recycling service. All of the cities currently pay more than $60 per ton to have their trash burned – this does not include each city’s contract for trash collection. This high cost does not leave resources for any of the cities to even consider investing in a real recycling program.

In March 2003, the Ecology Center and Clean Water Action supported an outreach effort in Westland. As a result, more than 400 letters were sent to Westland’s mayor and city council calling on the city to negotiate an end to the use of the Central Wayne incinerator for burning all of their trash and to instead implement a comprehensive curbside-recycling program. The residents of Westland, as well as Dearborn Heights, Garden City, Inkster, and Wayne might now have the opportunity to get the cleaner and cheaper alternative they deserve.

In May 2003, Ecology Center staff members Mike Garfield, Brad van Guilder, and board member Ed McArdle met with CWCSA Executive Director Steve Aynes. They suggested that CWCSA work with the bondholders to convert the facility to a garbage transfer station and a Materials Recovery Facility to process all of the material that could be collected through a new comprehensive curbside recycling program, coordinated jointly by all five cities.

The bondholders want to see a return on their investment. They have apparently conceded that their investment in a Wasted Energy facility is no longer worth $80 million. The bondholders should consider a far cleaner alternative that may be their only chance to recover at least part of their investment.

Brad van Guilder is the Ecology Center’s Wayne County Organizer.

S I D E B A R:

Lingering Concerns

The Central Wayne Trash incinerator still needs to resolve dozens of environmental violations of its operating permit if it ever resumes operation. The incinerator is a “mass burn” facility. Everything goes into its 800-ton per day capacity furnaces with no effort at sorting, so it includes batteries, tires, household chemicals – everything!

Burning trash generates air pollution that includes heavy metals like mercury, lead and cadmium. It even creates dioxin, extremely toxic, as a consequence of burning chlorinated plastics like PVC. The facility generates gases that contribute to acid rain and ozone.

What does not go into the air is captured in the toxic ash that gets buried in the ground. Metal pieces of larger than 8 inches are removed from the ash – after it has been burned along with all the toxic materials. The ash is buried in a special landfill in the middle of Oakwoods MetroPark along the Huron River in Huron Township (see Wayne County News, From the Ground Up, Jan/Feb 2003).