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Waste-To-Energy Conference
San Juan, Puerto Rico, March 14, 2007

Americans generate approximately 236 million tons of solid waste every year.  About 30% of that waste is recovered for recycling and composting.  On the island of Puerto Rico, about 3.6 million tons of solid waste is generated with only about 10-15% recovered. The problem of managing solid waste in the Commonwealth is complicated by the limitations of the Island’s size, its delicately balanced ecosystem, its burgeoning tourism industry and the continued encroachment of urban sprawl.

An integrated approach to solid waste management includes a four-tiered management hierarchy: Waste prevention including source reduction and reuse; recycling and composting; combustion with energy recovery (“Waste-to-Energy”); and, landfilling.

In an effort to call attention to the solid waste management problem in Puerto Rico, and to explore one option to landfilling, EPA Region 2 sponsored a “Waste-to-Energy Conference” in San Juan, Puerto Rico, on March 14, 2007.  More than 200 individuals participated in the ground breaking meeting that featured a number of presentations on this specific integrated solid waste management option. 

You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader to view some of the files on this page. See EPA's PDF page to learn more about PDF and for a link to the free Acrobat Reader.

Presentations delivered at the Conference are now available for downloading:

William F. Brandes, Chief of the Waste Minimization Branch, USEPA Office of Solid Waste
“Waste-to-Energy as a Waste Management Solution.” [680 KB, 27 pp]

Robert J. Wayland, PhD., Leader USEPA Energy Strategies Group,
“Clean Air Act Section 129 Waste-to-Energy Overview.” [643 KB, 16 pp]

Javier A. Quintana Mendez, Ph.D., Executive Director Puerto Rico Solid Waste Management Authority
“The Dynamic Itinerary for Infrastructure Projects - en Español.” [919 KB, 12 pp]

Carlos Lopez Freytes, Chairman Puerto Rico Environmental Quality Board
“More than Regulations – An Environmental Investment for the Future - en Español.” [1.1 MB, 30 pp]

Nickolas J. Themelis, Ph.D. Director Earth Engineering Center, Columbia University
“Sustainable Waste Management for Puerto Rico” [511 KB, 56 pp]

Frank J. Roethal, Ph.D., Research Professor, Waste Reduction and Management Institute, State University of New York at Stony Brook
“The Potential for Beneficially Using MSW Combustor Ash in Coastal Environments.” [2 MB, 31 pp]

John Waffenschmidt, Vice President, Business Development, Covanta Energy Corporation
“WTE Siting and Operations Community Aspects.” [1.1 MB, 33 pp]

Edgard Resto, Ph.D., former President of the Puerto Rico Association of Chemists
“The Handling of Solid Waste in Puerto Rico - en Español.” [1.2 MB, 22 pp]

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