The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has issued an official notice on the plans Oilfield Waste Management Services (OWMS) to construct a thermal desorption waste treatment plant at Little Diamond, East Bank Demerara to support oil exploration activities and has invited public feedback. According to a public notice issued by the EPA on Sunday, it has received an application for environmental authorization for the construction and operation of a waste treatment plant located at Block No.VIII, Plantation, Little Diamond.
The notice stated that in accordance with Section 11 (2) of the Environmental Protection Act, the application for the project was screened by the Agency to assess its potential environmental impacts and it has been determined that the project will not significantly affect the environment nor human health and is therefore exempt from the requirement of an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA).
It was further stated that any person who may be affected by the project may lodge an appeal against the agency’s decision with the Environmental Assessment Board within 30 days of the date of the publication of the notice.
OWMS had initially proposed to build the plant at Peters Hall, also on the East Bank of Demerara, but decided to relocate it after concerns were raised by residents.
“During the thirty-day period of the Notice, the EPA received objections and concerns from members of the public regarding the project’s suitability at the proposed location. As a result, the EPA placed the project on hold and engaged the project proponent, OWMS on the concerns raised. This led to the developer opting to propose a new location for the project; the new location is more remote and is at Little Diamond, EBD”, the EPA had said last November.
The EPA is on record as saying that it will only proceed to authorise the project if there are no objections from the public and upon receipt of the location suitability approval from the Central Housing and Planning Authority.
According to the project summary, which can be found on the EPA’s website, the plant is based on a thermal desorption separator (hammer mill) which uses friction to heat waste so that oil residues are evaporated. The evaporated oil and water contents are then condensed and recaptured before separating. The remaining solids can then be safely disposed or reused. “OWMS plans to recycle the recaptured oil so that it can be used in the Liquid Mud Plant manufacturing process. The solid wastes will be used in the bitumen manufacturing process. No solids are expected to be sent to landfills,” the document states.
The document informed that the footprint of treatment plant is about 5,000 m2 (the length is about 100 metres and the width is about 50 metres). The general plan of the project is divided into four functional areas: operation area, oily cuttings storage area, treated cuttings storage area, as well as office and living area.
Oily cuttings storage area is a concrete pit with rainproof shelter, which can hold 1,000 tons of oily cuttings and covers an area of about 1,000m2. Sixty tons of oily cuttings are expected to be treated per month.
The nearest residence west of the site is 682 meters away while the nearest resident south of the site is 91 meters away and the nearest residence to east is 908 meters away. There are no residents north of the site.
