Babcock & Wilcox Building Waste-to-Energy Unit in Florida

Babcock & Wilcox Co. (B&W) and its partner KBR Inc. are building a waste-to-energy (WTE) facility in West Palm Beach, Fla., for Palm Beach County, to be completed in the middle of next year.

The facility, the second at the Renewable Energy Park for the Solid Waste Authority of Palm Beach County, is being designed to process more than 1.7 million tons of solid waste annually and generate renewable energy to power more than 85,000 homes. The facility will employ more than 200 full-time workers, according to a news release.

Charlotte, N.C.-based B&W recently hosted Rep. Patrick Murphy (D-Fla.-18) to view the renewable energy park and the construction of the first WTE plant to be built in the United States since 1995, the company said. Murphy has been involved with roundtable discussions with area manufacturers on the impact of federal legislation.

The new facility is designed to have high combustion efficiency and eliminate 90 to 99 percent of acid gas, heavy metal and dioxins emissions. It will employ B&W technology, including a selective catalytic reduction system.

The new facility is projected to reduce the amount of waste currently being landfilled by up to 85 percent, which could delay the need for a new landfill in the area for years.