Debris Processing: We All Can Help

With processing set to start as soon as specialized equipment is offloaded this week, the 111-acre Frank Sound debris-holding site will soon be a hive of activity.

The equipment, comprising a giant tub grinder, a self-contained air curtain burner and a mobile metal bailer, will significantly reduce the bulk of the hurricane debris and will in most instances render beneficial byproducts.

Wood and other plant debris will be mulched; metal goods will be baled and shipped off island as scrap metal, while the curtain burner, which can process as much as 10 tonnes per hour, will convert the rest of the debris into ash.

White goods such as washing machines, household appliances and fridges will also be baled as scrap metal, but only after all hazardous materials have been removed. The Freon gas extracted from air conditioners and fridges will be stockpiled in large storage containers for safe disposal. To prevent environmental damage, other hazardous materials, including batteries and paint cans, will be taken to a staging area and placed in lined pits.

All this should go on without anyone noticing, as the site was carefully prepared with environmental aesthetics in mind, said site manager Benjamin Bodden. "We prepared a good buffer at the edge of the land to keep the processing activities out of public view. The whole idea behind debris processing is to help the environment by reducing the volume of waste and creating beneficial byproducts. The ways in which we are currently processing the debris limits wastefulness since we can use most of the materials again."

But debris processing is not just for the experts, said Mr Bodden. "The public can play its part by sorting everything before it is dumped," he said. This will cut processing time dramatically as there are currently more than 30 people sorting metal and other goods by hand.

"Keeping metal and white goods and hazardous material apart from other debris will greatly be appreciated," he said.