Incinerator and cement kiln capacity for hazardous waste treatment

Abstract Estimates of incinerator and cement kiln capacities for hazardous waste treatment are required to evaluate the impacts of banning land disposal of hazardous wastes. Hazardous waste permit applications were reviewed to obtain information about incinerator design capacity, utilization, and the incinerated hazardous wastes. This study identified 208 incinerators within the regulatory program of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act that are presently destroying approximately 2 million metric tons of hazardous waste annually. The unused potential capacity of these units is estimated to be 1 million metric tons of waste per year. The estimated annual hazardous waste treatment capacity available in cement kilns ranges between 2 and 6 million metric tons. Less than 5% of the potential hazardous waste treatment capacity in cement kilns has been permitted under the appropriate regulations. Factors affecting this low utilization include the large geographic distances separating some major waste generation sites from cement kilns, marginal economic benefits, and the uncertainty of some kiln operators about regulatory requirements.