Conporec
History
In
1980, faced with the ever-increasing cost of waste disposal
and the lack of a landfill site, a few forward-thinking people
in the Sorel-Tracy area set out on a quest to find a waste-management
solution. Their investigation soon took them across Europe in
search of recycling and reclamation methods. A technology based
on a bioreactor to produce compost from municipal waste was
recognized immediately as a cutting-edge solution and led to
the creation of Conporec. The funding required to set up the
new plant was made possible by a contract to supply services
to most of the municipalities in the Bas-Richelieu regional
county municipality. The Conporec plant went into operation
in 1993.
With the application of this technology–of which Conporec
has sole ownership (patented in several countries)–the
Company made a contractual commitment not to dispose of more
than 30% of the waste in a landfill site; it would recover or
reclaim fully 70% of it. Today, after 10 years of operation,
the plant is still reaching its target 70% reclamation
rate and produces commercial-grade compost as a reclaimed
product.
As with all Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development
(OECD) nations, Canada–and, by extension Québec–have
reclamation targets that require them to convert 60% of their
landfill sites by 2010. To date, the Bas-Richelieu region is
the only one to have reached–and even exceeded–that
target, thanks to the use of the Conporec technology.
Areas of activity
Based on its vision of transforming waste materials into true
resources, Conporec has used the results of its research and
development activities to adapt and improve its process over
the past 10 years.
Conporec is the sole owner and expert in the process. Given
its cost-effectiveness, the process is a serious competitor
in the field of integrated waste management. As a result, the
Company is able to provide comprehensive solutions to communities
that are concerned about sustainable development. It is the
only solution currently on the market that can process and convert
large volumes of household wastes into a reclaimed product.
The Company’s plants have a minimum capacity of approximately
30,000 tonnes/year; however, the technology has no set limits
in terms of maximum capacity.
Regardless of the business model and type of partnership with
the public, Conporec can build and operate such plants anywhere
in the world. The Company is currently completing construction
of two facilities in the United States and France and is in
discussions to build a dozen more.
Technology on display at the Vitrine
technologique
The Vitrine technologique technology showcase provides Conporec
with a forum for exhibiting its innovative and proven process.
The presentation focuses on the key elements of the processing
chain, namely the bioreactor, the compost-maturation site and
the sorting area.
The bioreactor is the key element of the Conporec
process. Waste materials are kept in the bioreactor for three
days to ensure homogeneity. The organic matter is subjected
to a semi-continuous accelerated composting process. Unlike
other composting technologies, the Conporec process does not
grind, shred or crush the waste materials; this makes it possible
to recover the recyclable materials and to improve the quality
of the compost obtained.
The organic matter is separated from the non-organic matter
mechanically. The former is then transported to the maturation
building where it is placed in windrows. Forced aeration
and regular turning of the windrows enable the compost to reach
the degree of maturation and to acquire the physicochemical
properties required for marketing.
The non-organic matter is transported to a sorting area
where the recyclable products (metals and construction/demolition
materials) are recovered.
Conporec’s process is flexible; it can be adapted to a
one-, two-( recyclable/other wastes) or three-stream (putrescible)
collection method, and even to a dry/wet collection method.
Regardless of the method adopted by a community, the Conporec
technology reclaims the organic matter effectively and systematically,
even if the waste products were not properly sorted at the source.
The composting process also allows for the reclamation of several
types of organic waste from the industrial/commercial/institutional
sector, including municipal and industrial sludge.
The Conporec process is entirely aerobic and does not produce
any biogases. It can also be used in any processes involving
CO2 -transaction credits under the Kyoto protocol. Conporec’s
approach makes it possible to comply with the 4R-D (reduce,
reuse, recycle, reclaim, then dispose) philosophy.
Possible applications of the technology
Compositing of putrescible matter is one of the challenges currently
facing public authorities. All OECD countries will have to apply
such techniques in order to reach their reclamation targets.
The Conporec approach guarantees success and provides residents
with a flexible user and eco-friendly way of managing their
waste materials responsibly.
The Conporec technology combines remarkable performance in terms
of reclamation levels and cost-effectiveness and the result
is a marketable reclaimed product. This approach to integrated
waste management and reclamation by composting can be applied
in any regional community that is concerned about sustainable
development and is seeking to manage its waste responsibly.
The
information conveyed is of a promotional and informative nature
and has been adapted into layman’s terms. In no case should
its content be considered complete, exhaustive or free of error
with respect to the technical data it contains.
