Waste minimization makes good financial and environmental sense.  Alyeska’s Waste Management Program organizes the company’s efforts to reduce costs and environmental impact by minimizing waste generation.  Successful waste management is a joint effort between Alyeska’s Environment, Safety, Materials, Operations, Maintenance and Construction teams.

Alyeska has one Anchorage-based technical expert that is responsible for Alyeska’s program management and direction.  Field-based environmental coordinators assist pipeline- and terminal-based employees and contractors to manage their wastes in compliance with Alyeska policies and federal, state, and local regulations.  Formal training is provided to all field personnel on an annual basis; informal training and guidance is provided daily.  Each facility within the Alyeska system has emergency contingency plans to assist with planning and responding to releases of hazardous wastes.

Regulations apply to generation of hazardous and non-hazardous wastes.  Although there are stricter requirements for the management of hazardous wastes, Alyeska makes the same, diligent effort to properly handle and dispose of non-hazardous wastes.

Waste Minimization

The best way to minimize waste is by reducing waste generation.  Alyeska actively reduces the wastes it generates by limiting the opportunity to create wastes.  For example, warehouse personnel are instructed to order only the amount of product needed to complete a work task, even if it costs more to order less.  Paints, epoxies and thinners, which have expiration dates, can be recertified for use by an inspector and/or can be used for non-specified work.  And employees strictly adhere to a “new chemical review” process to ensure that environmentally-friendly substitutes are purchased when new chemicals are added to Alyeska’s materials inventory.

Alyeska reuses materials until they can no longer be used for their intended purpose.  Examples include the reuse of solvent, sandblast sand, and rags.  When Alyeska reuses materials until they can no longer be used, it means less trash to be disposed of, less time for people to handle the trash, and less money spent on the activities required to manage the trash.

Alyeska also recycles many materials that would normally be thrown away.  Aluminum cans, plastic bottles, newspaper, office paper, cardboard, lead acid batteries, smoke detectors, radioactive exit signs, ethylene glycol, scrap metal and toner cartridges are just some of the materials that Alyeska diverts from landfills and toward local recycling companies.

Waste Handling

Although everyone at Alyeska is responsible for managing their own wastes, there are individuals who receive more training than others to handle documentation, labeling, packaging, and disposal of hazardous wastes.  In accordance with federal law, these Single Points of Contact (SPOCs) receive more waste-related training than the average employee.

Waste Disposal

Alyeska disposes of its non-hazardous waste in three ways:  landfills, incinerators, and treatment/disposal facilities in the Lower 48.

Alyeska Landfills:  Alyeska is permitted to operate three landfills along the trans-Alaska pipeline system.  These landfills are used for disposal of solid construction debris and incinerator ash.  No oil, chemicals, or other materials that have the potential to leach into groundwater or soil is permitted Alyeska-permitted landfills.  Monthly monitoring and annual leachate analysis is required.  Alyeska has never had any non-compliance issues associated with its landfills.

Municipal Landfills:  Depending upon location, many Alyeska facilities use municipal landfills to dispose of non-hazardous waste.  These landfills are located in Deadhorse (Prudhoe Bay), Fairbanks, Delta Junction, Glennallen, Valdez, and Anchorage.  Alyeska must comply with the permit requirements of each municipal landfill it uses.

Incineration:  Most pump station facilities burn their wastes in an on-site incinerator.  The incinerators are permitted by the State of Alaska to burn non-hazardous wastes.  The incinerator ash is analyzed for leachable metals prior to disposal in municipal and Alyeska landfills.

Shipment to Lower 48 facilities:  Alyeska generates non-hazardous wastes that legally and/or practically cannot be incinerated or landfilled.  For these wastes, Alyeska ships these wastes to facilities that dispose of specific wastes.  For example, smoke detectors, asbestos, and antifreeze with impurities are shipped to facilities that are specifically designed to manage these wastes.  In some instances, the wastes are recycled into new products or are burned for energy recovery.

In addition to routine, household-type wastes, Alyeska generates wastes that are classified as hazardous waste.  “Hazardous waste” is a term assigned by EPA when wastes are corrosive, reactive, ignitable and/or toxic.  Because there are no hazardous waste transfer, disposal or treatment facilities in Alaska, pipeline, marine terminal and urban-based facilities must ship their hazardous wastes to facilities that are permitted to handle and dispose of hazardous waste.