Pope / Douglas Solid Waste Management is a partnership created by Pope and Douglas County in 1983. This partnership was created to manage the solid waste stream generated in both counties.

Please take a few moments to explore our site and learn how your garbage is managed, and see how we can help you reduce, reuse and recycle.

Waste-to-Energy Facility

The Pope/Douglas Solid Waste Joint Powers Board was formed in 1983. The purpose of the organization is to own and operate a solid waste management system. The system is owned and governed by Pope County at 25% and Douglas County at 75%.

The Waste to Energy Facility (WTE) was constructed in 1986 and began accepting waste in April of 1987. A recycling program was implemented in December of 1988. The goal of the program is to keep elements that are harmful and decrease the life of the incinerator (such as glass and metals) out of the waste stream.

In 2011 a third combustion unit was added to the WTE Facility to meet the solid waste management needs of Pope and Douglas Counties.

The Waste to Energy facility is permitted to process 240 tons per day. It operates 24 hours per day, 365 days a year. The facility has a pit that is 20 feet deep where the industrial wastes and sorted wastes from the sorting facility are mixed together. A grapple picks up the waste and loads it into the incinerator where it is burned at 1,800°F. During the incineration process 76,000 M pounds of steam, at 170 pounds of pressure, is generated.

Material Recycling Facility

In 2003 a Material Recycling Facility (MRF) was added to the front end of the waste combustors. The purpose of the MRF is to remove recyclables, hazards and problem items from the trash before combustion.

How the Process Works:

The trucks dump the trash in the tipping hall.

The front end loader employee removes very large metal pieces.

The trash is then dumped onto a conveyer then brought to an air conditioned and/or heated enclosure where employees pick out large unburnables like microwaves and mufflers.

Next, employees pull out corrugated cardboard and toss onto a large chute or storage bunker. When it’s full, it’s conveyed to a baler and baled for market.

Employees don’t touch unopened bags.

After the trash passes through the picking station, it goes into a large trommel screen (a rotating drum) that is 10’ diameter x 40’ long. The drum has two sizes of holes called fines which are 2” – 6”. The trommel screen has knives to rip open the garbage bags. As the drum rotates it mixes everything up.

During the process the fines (small bits of broken glass, lottery tickets, gravel, cigarette butts and etc.) fall through unto a conveyer and then are passed over a magnetic head pulley which pulls only small items such as button batteries, pins, screws, nails and etc. The collected remaining combustibles continue on to the storage pit where they are mixed with other MSW that is to be fed to the waste combustor.

The next separation process is cans and other items of the same size. They fall through onto a magnetic separator. All items which are magnetized fall into one bunker. The similar shaped objects which were not removed by the magnet continue on and are then separated by an eddy current separator which repels the aluminum into a bunker where it is ultimately baled. The collected remaining combustibles continue on to the storage pit where they are mixed with other MSW that is to be fed to the waste combustor.

All other items not removed fall out the end of the trommel onto a belt conveyor. This belt also runs under a magnet picking up other larger metal objects. All three lines merge and are conveyed to the storage pit.

CONTACT DETAILS

Pope / Douglas Solid Waste Management

2115 Jefferson Street Alexandria, MN 56308

Office Hours Monday-Friday 8-12 and 1-4:30 Closed Saturday and Sunday

Phone: 320-763-9340

Toll Free: 800-972-6318

Fax: 320-763-9342

Web: http://www.popedouglasrecycle.com/