SRS plant to emit less pollution

Savannah River Site's new biomass steam plant will burn 322,000 tons of wood products and shredded tires a year but emit less pollution than the aging coal-fired facility it will replace.

"It's a major energy conservation project, and also a step in reducing emissions," said Department of Energy spokeswoman Julie Petersen.

The $795 million biomass plant, announced last week, will be built in F Area, near the center of the site, and should open by December 2011, after which an existing coal-fired steam-generating plant in D Area will be decommissioned.

Biomass facilities typically burn timber, pallets, forestry debris and similar material to produce energy. The new plant at SRS is also designed to allow up to 30 percent of its fuel to come from "finely shredded tires," she said.

Although the new plant will generate 20 megawatts of electricity, its main purpose will be to produce steam for many purposes.

"Steam is used to transfer waste from nuclear facilities and reduce volume of liquid waste in tanks, to power evaporators and for temperature controls in nuclear ventilation systems," Ms. Petersen said.

Much of the timber residue to be burned will come from outside SRS, meaning that a new market for waste forest products could be established within a certain radius of the plant.

"The majority of the fuel will come from off-site logging companies," Ms. Petersen said. "The way the contract reads, we can use up to 30 percent of forestry residue from the site, but the majority will come from off-site."

She said the steam-generating plant will be the U.S. government's largest such facility, although there is a larger private one in Virginia.

Estimates indicate that the project will save $34 million a year in energy, operation and maintenance costs and reduce air emissions, including 100,000 tons per year of greenhouse gas.

Biomass facilities are gaining ground in many regions, but especially in the Southeast.

Oglethorpe Power Corp. is planning a pair of $400 million biomass electric generating plants in Georgia, and Georgia Power Co. has announced plans to convert its Plant Mitchell in Albany, Ga., from coal-fired to biomass generation.

"We have been supportive of projects that burn primarily agricultural waste and forest residues," said Stephen Smith, the executive director of the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy.

Although the SRS project will use shredded tires in addition to wood products, it is still a major improvement over burning coal.

"In the grand scheme of things, this project is better than an existing coal plant, but it's not as good as something that's 100 percent agricultural products," Dr. Smith said. "But it's definitely a step in the right direction."

The contractor for the SRS project, Ameresco Federal Solutions Inc., is based in Knoxville, Tenn. The contract price also includes replacing a network of aging steam pipes.

In addition to power produced on-site, SRS also buys about $15.6 million a year in electricity from South Carolina Electric & Gas Co.

Reach Rob Pavey at 868-1222, ext. 119, or rob.pavey@augustachronicle.com.