Data on incinerators in the Tokorozawa area

　 There are 64 licensed industrial waste incinerators operating in the Tokorozawa area. Of the 64 incinerators, 51 have capacities below 5 tons per day. Until a 1997 amendment to the Waste Management Regulations, incinerators with capacities below than 5 tons per day remained outside the regulations.
In the graph below, we can see the results of Saitama Prefectureﾕs environmental policy. The authorities repeatedly encouraged notorious open-burning violators to erect incinerators with capacities below 5 tons per day, which at that time were unregulated by law.

　Due to two amendments in Saitama prefectureﾕs waste management regulations enacted in 1997 and 1998, which strengthened regulations in incinerator construction specifications and operation maintenance, many incinerators have shut down operations, either temporarily or permanently. Citizens were led to believe that environmental conditions would improve. Yet residents living near incinerators, oppressed by smoke, have found the incidence of pollution to be more serious than ever.
Presented below are analyses results of data compiled from incinerator permit applications on file at the prefecture, and from data culled from incinerator logbooks during citizen inspections.

１，. Examining temporary and permanent shutdowns, and upgrades in incinerator capacity.
Operational status of incinerators in the Tokorozawa area (by number of incinerator)

　 Saitama Prefecture reports that out of the 64 licensed industrial waste incinerators in the Tokorozawa area, 16 have shut down permanently, 10 have shutdown temporarily, one is being rebuilt, and 37 are operating as usual. Citizens report that 3 out of the 10 temporary shutdowns have no apparent plans to resume operations. The plans of the remaining 7 facilities are unknown.

　From the above graph, we can see that even though 16 permanent shutdowns have been reported, as the incinerators were the smaller type, overall there has only been an 8% reduction in the total amount of wastes incinerated.

　From the permit applications filed with the prefecture, we can see that during the 1990ﾕs there was a drastic increase in the overall amount of incineration. In 1997, the 64 industrial waste incinerators collectively burned an average of 407 tons per day. Between 1997 and 1999, there were 16 permanent shutdowns, with a collective decrease in incineration of about 35 tons per day. But in 1998, which falls in the same period, an existing facility, Yamaichi Shoji, was granted a permit to rebuild, increasing the facilityﾕs capacity by 20 tons per day. So the actual net decrease in total wastes burned works out to be around 15 tons per day.

２，About industrial waste incinerator operating conditions
Standards for incineration design and operations were strengthened in December 1998. In April 1999, waste storage regulations were also strengthened. Yet recently the smoke has returned to wreath the Kunugiyama area, expecially in the early morning hours. Behind the seeming optimism of strengthened regulations lies the darker reality of night burning, incinerators operating with hatches open, and refuse dumped into the hatch while the incinerator is in operation. Poor operational procedures such as these are responsible for airborne ash, black smoke, and chloride smells. And still nothing has been done about the oversized heaps of refuse, which are now flagrantly in violation of waste storage regulations.

１）Complete incineration and temperature control
Nearly all of the incinerators in the Tokorozawa area are batch-mode types designed to operate for 8 hours per day. Only one facility, which operates two furnaces, is equipped for continuous- mode incineration. None of the incinerators is equipped with a grate to agitate or mix the refuse to ensure even burning. Complete burning is impossible to attain under these circumstances, and during the daily start-ups and shutdowns, large amounts of dioxins may be produced. In order to attain complete combustion, the prefecture advises: ﾒFill the furnace with the appropriate amount of refuse once per day. Use the auxiliary burner to assist combustion. Do not open the hatch until the furnace has achieved complete burnout. If the temperature in the furnace drops below 800℃, use the auxiliary burner to raise the temperature. Toward the end of incineration use the auxiliary burner once again to insure complete burnout.ﾓ
However, because there are so many incinerators in this area, the ﾒadviceﾓ and ﾒoverseeingﾓ capabilities of the prefecture authorities are in question. The incinerators, unequipped with agitator grates, cannot possibly burn waste effectively. On inspection of the ash, partially burned lumps of matter are clearly visible to the eye, and the amount of partially burned matter exceeds the 10% limit imposed by waste management regulations. The authorities show no signs of acting on this violation.

＊ １24. What the temperature logs reveal about operating conditions
The recent amendment to the waste management regulations allows citizens to inspect maintenance logs kept by industrial waste incineration facilities. On inspection, temperature measurement logs revealed that it was common practice for operators the open the hatch while the furnace was in the middle of the burning process. The logs also revealed that operators fed the furnaces several times per day, did not ensure complete burnout, and did not comply with registered operating hours. Some operators had even turned off the devices to measure temperature during operations. The waste management regulations were strengthened over a half a year ago. What are the authorities doing?

Temperature measurement graphs show a pattern which concurs with feeding the furnace in the middle of a burn cycle. This pattern repeats two or three times per day. It is also obvious that steady temperatures of at least 800℃ are not being maintained. The graph on the right is from a facility that admits turning off the recording device as soon as the temperature reaches 800℃.

The condition of incinerator ash (incomplete burning)
From the looks of the partially burned objects in the ash, it is obvious that burning is incomplete. Not one of the facilities in the area has a roof over the ash storage receptacles, which leaves the ash open to the effects of rain and wind. We remain apprehensive about seepage and windborne spread of dangerous substances.

28. Citizens witness smoke black with fly ash belching from the smokestacks. Black smoke is emitted in the mornings and evenings during start-ups and shutdowns, and during operations when the hatch is opened to feed the furnace.

In August 1998, this incineratorﾕs hydrogen chloride emissions were measured at 6100ppm (the regulatory guidelines set the limit for HC emissions at 700ppm). Because the test was voluntary, the prefecture says they have not offered any guidance on this matter. Citizens visiting the facility report chloride smells in the vicinity.

＊４　 Night operations
After citizens and authorities have gone to sleep, the facilities can operate as they please. In the mornings the area is wreathed with smoke. Operational hours written on the incinerator permits are flagrantly ignored.