EBV Explosives Environmental Company, which operates the explosives incinerator at the former Atlas Powder facility west of Carthage, is looking to expand and the state is inviting the public to comment on draft hazardous waste permit modifications.
The Missouri Department of Natural Resources has opened a 45-day public comment period and is inviting the public to review and offer written comments on the draft hazardous waste permit modifications until Dec. 29.
The draft permit modifications and this fact sheet are available on the department's Web site at www.dnr.mo.gov/env/hwp/permits/notices.htm. Supporting documents are not available on the Web site due to their size. The public can review and copy the modification request, draft permit modifications, and supporting documents at the Joplin Public Library, 300 S. Main St. in Joplin.
The DNR said EBV wants to build a new thermal treatment building for the "demilitarization and treatment" of ammunition from the U.S. Army.
One section of this building will house four demilitarization lines for military munitions to remove and disassemble the sub-munitions contained in the munitions, the DNR said. The second section will use two static kilns to burn and deactivate the sub-munitions.
"The proposed treatment includes four thermal treatment chambers to deactivate the submunitions bodies and two static kilns to deactivate the fuses," the DNR wrote in a written release. "These four lines will be able to process up to 500 lbs per hour per line of hazardous waste generated from the demilitarization of Class 1.1 D military munitions. There will be an Air Pollution Control System (APCS) that pulls the emissions from the two static kilns. There will be two additional APCSs to pull the emissions from the four chambers."
The company has said construction of the building and the addition of this service will add 20 employees to the 60 people already working at the facility. It will also mean an additional two trucks per week coming and going from the area, which is located at 3078 County Road 180.
TO COMMENT:
During the 45-day public comment period, anyone can request a public hearing on the draft permit modifications by writing to Mr. Richard Hock, Missouri Department of Natural Resources, Hazardous Waste Program, P.O. Box 176, Jefferson City, MO 65102-0176, or by e-mail to richard.hock@dnr.mo.gov or by fax to 573-526-5268. The hearing request must state what issues are to be brought up during the hearing.
