[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 54 (Tuesday, March 19, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 11195-11196]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-6526]



-----------------------------------------------------------------------


DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Notice of Intent to Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for 
the Proposed Plasma ARC Hazardous Waste Treatment Facility, Naval Base 
Norfolk, Virginia
SUMMARY: Pursuant to Section 102(2)(c) of the National Environmental 
Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969 as implemented by the Council on 
Environmental Quality regulations (40 CFR Parts 1500-1508), the 
Department of the Navy announces its intent to prepare an Environmental 
Impact Statement (EIS) to evaluate the potential environmental effects 
of a proposed Plasma Arc Hazardous Waste Treatment Facility (PAHWTF) at 
Naval Base Norfolk, Virginia.

    A PAHWTF uses a thermal process for treating solid and hazardous 
waste. The system employs extremely high temperature (10,000 to 30,000 
deg.F) from a plasma arc torch to destroy organic waste and change or 
fuse solid or hazardous waste into a glass-like, nonleachable 
substance, a process known as vitrification. A typical PAHWTF consists 
of a feeder system, primary combustion chamber, secondary combustion 
chamber, off-gas treatment system, and slag collection chamber. This 
technology has existed for over 20 years, and initially was used for 
simulation of high thermal loads encountered by spacecraft during 
atmospheric reentry. The process has been successfully used to treat 
contaminated soil and several different hazardous waste streams. The 
technology has also been used for applications such as refining and 
recovery of metals.

    During the first 12 to 18 months following installation, the PAHWTF

[[Page 11196]]
will be operated as a demonstration facility, treating limited 
quantities of waste such as used paint, dirt contaminated with oil and 
hydraulic fluids, oil rags, solvents, and other waste generated from 
industrial operations at Naval Base Norfolk. The purpose of the 
demonstration period is to construct and operate a full scale 
production unit to establish an optimum method of feeding various types 
of waste and to establish the economic viability of the process.
    Under normal operating conditions, the processing rate of the 
proposed unit will be 400 to 700 pounds per hour (approximately 
equivalent to a 55-gallon drum). It is anticipated that during the 
demonstration period, specific types of waste will be fed into the unit 
to determine optimum feed rates. During the demonstration period, the 
unit will typically be operated one to two days per week, which could 
involve 24-hour-per-day operation, with a maximum of 30,000 pounds 
being treated in any given month. When the demonstration period is 
successfully completed and the unit can be placed into full operation 
(24-hour-per-day, Monday through Friday), it is anticipated that 
approximately 175,000 pounds per month could be treated. However, 
because of down time for procedures such as slag extraction and the 
performance of preventive and corrective maintenance, the unit will 
only actually be in operation approximately 65% of the time.
    Once cost effectiveness and appropriate feed-rates are established, 
the facility will be used to treat a significant portion of the 
approximately 2 million pounds of waste generated at Naval Base 
Norfolk. This will reduce the volume of hazardous waste requiring off-
site transfer for treatment and disposal. The decision whether to 
continue use of the facility will be based on its operational 
performance (i.e., reliability of the system, feed rate, byproducts, 
etc.), cost efficiency, and the ability to secure long-term permits. 
The waste stream will be limited to the materials which can be treated 
most cost effectively.
    Topics to be addressed in the EIS include, but will not be limited 
to, air quality, land use, socioeconomic impacts, water quality, flood 
plains, and noise. The waste to be treated at this facility will be 
managed to create no public health or safety risk. Various sites at 
Naval Base Norfolk will be addressed in the EIS. Operation of this unit 
will be subject to obtaining the required permits from both the U.S. 
Environmental Protection Agency and the Commonwealth of Virginia. 
Federal, state and local agencies, and interested individuals are 
invited to participate in the scoping process to determine the range of 
issues related to the proposed project.

ADDRESSES: A public scoping meeting to receive oral and written 
comments will be held on Tuesday, April 16, 1996, at 7:00 p.m., at the 
Sewells Point Elementary School, 7928 Hampton Boulevard, Norfolk, 
Virginia 23505. At the meeting, the Navy will present a brief overview 
of the proposed action, then public comments will be received. When 
registering, each attendee will be requested to indicate whether oral 
comments will be delivered at the meeting. In the interest of available 
time, each speaker will be asked to limit oral comments to five 
minutes. Longer comments should be summarized at the meeting. In 
addition, written comments and/or questions may be submitted no later 
than April 30, 1996 to: Commander, Atlantic Division, Naval Facilities 
Engineering Command, 1510 Gilbert Street, Norfolk, Virginia 23511-2699 
(Attention: Mr. Robert Waldo, Code 2032RW), telephone (804) 322-4895, 
fax (804) 322-4894.

    Dated: March 14, 1996.
M.D. Schetzsle,
LT, JAGC, USNR, Alternate Federal Register Liaison Officer.
[FR Doc. 96-6526 Filed 3-18-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3810-FF-P