We are FCC - Nº3

What technology and equipment does the complex have? The complex has all that is necessary to provide the urban solid waste co- llection service, sorting of cardboard, glass, batteries, large items, orga- nic and inorganic fractions as well as maintenance tasks and the washing of containers. It has an industrial workshop and a container and equipment storage area as well as an indoor parking facility for its fleet of vehicles. For the treatment of collected waste, the facility has two separate lines: one for organic frac- tions and another one for inorganic fractions. Each of these has its own machinery and industrial plant in ad- dition to a zone for storing recovered materials and compost. For eliminating rejected waste, the site has an active waste cell and ano- ther one in the pipeline. Leachates are handled in a processing station consisting of a pre-treatment with sul- phuric acid, reverse osmosis and an evaporator. The facilities also have a cogeneration plant with micro biogas turbines to generate electricity which is mostly used at the plant and for hea- ting purposes so as to reduce the con- sumption of biomass at the boilers of the leachate treatment plant. Can you describe the process for treating organic fraction and the re- covery process? Organic fraction is subjected to a me- chanical pre-treatment process. It goes through a bag-opening system and a drum screen. Metals contained in the fraction are eliminated by means of an electromagnet and it is then sent to the composting process, mixing it previously with ground vegetables. It is composted in a nave and finally, the organic compost is transferred to the area for refining it. The inorganic fraction goes through the bag-opening system and the drum screen, and then circulates through a triage cabin with a capacity of about 2 tonnes/hour for recovering scrap metal, glass, LDPE, HDPE, PET, cardboard, containers, plastic, steel, aluminium and other me- tals. The rejected flows of organic and inor- ganic fractions are then pressed (ex- cept for the materials left over from the refining process) and then transferred to the landfill site for rejected materials. What is the treatment capacity of the facility? Although it was originally designed for a capacity of 25,000 tonnes, capacity was increased to 35,000 tonnes after implementing several modifications. Current capacity is about 33,000 ton- nes. What are the characteristics and the destination of the material recovered at the facility? Glass is sent to Ecovidrio. Metal and plastic from containers are sent to INTERVIEW Jacobo Patiño Manager of the Barbanza Environmental Complex Ecoembes. The rest of the materials, such as recovered cardboard, scrap metal, wood, WEEE, batteries and RPs are sent to an authorised mana- ger for its recycling or for its appropria- te treatment. Compost, which is alre- ady recycled, is sold in retail sales and is also used for partially sealing the landfill site, which is done periodically by mixing it with the soil on the surface. Why is recycling important for the environment and what are its effects? Natural resources are depleted and, even though it seems a major and glo- bal problem, we can all contribute by sorting and depositing waste properly at home. This makes it much easier for us to recover materials and will contri- bute to increasing the volume of recy- cled material and, consequently, redu- ce the utilisation and abuse of natural resources. This is the only thing that citizens are asked to do, sort and de- posit waste properly. This is certainly a major step for humanity. What can and cannot be recycled? Certain materials cannot be recycled because, as of yet, there is no mar- ket for these materials or because the appropriate processes do not exist yet. The number of materials that can be recycled, however, is increasing. For example, all organic waste is 100% recyclable (which is nearly half of its weight). Plastic and metal elements, paper-cardboard, glass, batteries, WEEE, wood and textiles are also re- cyclable if it has not been placed next to regular garbage to prevent it from getting soiled. Furthermore, thanks to the existing recycling areas, all hazar- dous household waste such as paint, X-rays, etc. have a recycling market or can be disposed of in a controlled environment.