PWC Yard Waste Composting Facility

Prince William Yard Waste Composting Facility

 

Bernard Osilka, Environmental Engineer for the PWC Solid Waste Division Office.

As a continued public service to residents of Bristow, Gainesville, and Nokesville, BristowEnews.com is featuring the Balls Road Yard Waste Composting Facility located off Balls Ford Road near the intersection off Wellington Road.

 

The Yard Waste Composting is the one of the busiest composting facilities in Prince William County. We met with Bernard Osilka, Environmental Compliance Engineer for the Solid Waste Division Office. According to Bernard, the facility accepts thirteen (13) tons per month of recycling materials from homeowners and businesses. The facility is about 30 acres and the estimated life of the facility is for another forty-three years. Bernard pointed out there are twenty-three (23) Windrows in the Yard Waste Composting facility. Windrows are often referred to the build up of dirt materials on large mounds usually from seven to fifty feet in height. Windrows are similar to your miniature composting bins in your back yard. In addition, the Yard Waste Composting facility has two modes of operations:

Moreover, Bernard explained the four phases involved in the process of decomposition of recycled material:

Phase One: Grass clippings, brushes, and trees are weighed in and put in a scale upon entry to the facility. The fees are based on the amount of materials brought in to be recycled and processed.

Phase Two: The materials are discarded into a large composting bin. Bernard pointed out that it is very important that the customer separate the tires and the metals from the brushes and grass clippings prior to unloading. By performing these extra steps, the County can save labor hours in separating the recyclable and non-recyclable materials. It also cuts down on the wear and tear of the recycling grinder used in crushing the materials to a manageable consistency. By separating these materials, the County can save tax payers in fixing and replacing the expensive parts of the equipment. The leaves, grasses, brushes, and other wood waste are then mulched for public consumption.

Phase Three: The materials are then loaded on dump trucks, carried, and unloaded on large mounds called Windrows. Again, there are about twenty three (23) Windrows in this facility and each Windrow or groups of Windrows have a specific function for the materials to properly decompose. It takes about six (6) to (9) months and an internal temperature of 140 -150 degrees needs to be taken on a weekly basis for the materials to properly decompose. The materials in the Windrow have to be turned using large construction equipment such as Excavators and Crawler Loaders. It takes about 6 - 8 hours for each Windrow to be properly turned over. As a result of this weekly maintenance, residents and commuters alike often smell a distinct pungent odor when driving by the recycling center.

Phase Four: Once the materials have achieved the desired state; the materials are then loaded on to a construction Loader and then disposed to a Horizontal Grinder. A Horizontal Grinder is heavy recycling equipment and has a built-in sieve which rotates at a very high speed. It separates and filters composed materials from the debris such as rocks and plastics from the finer rich top soil materials and dirt. This equipment can weight as much as 56,000 lbs, 44 feet in length, and can deliver a torque weight as much as 12,000 lbs. Once it is completely separated, the "black gold" is then sold to the general public. This material is rich in nutrients and makes a great addition to your home garden and landscaping.

Bernard pointed out that there are few other things the general public can facilitate in the reuse of renewable resources, namely:

1. Fold the card board boxes in such a way it can save storage space in the recycling bin at the Facility. This also prevents the recycling trucks from making unnecessary trips between facilities.
2. Deposit grass clippings preferably in paper bags because paper can deteriorate quickly compared to plastic garbage bags.
3. When hauling in brushes or tree debris for mulching, separate any foreign objects such as metals, tires, and non bio-degradable materials. By performing these additional steps, the equipment used for mulching will be spared from expensive repairs and replacements.

Horizontal Grinder

The facility does not accept the following materials:

1. Tires, Car Batteries, household hazardous materials, sod, dirt, and rocks.
2. Paint, pallets, concrete, and tree stumps.

The current fees are as follows:

For Prince William County Residents:
Trash and Recycle Materials - No Fee.

Non-Prince William County Residents and Business:
$27.00/ton Unbagged yard waste
$29.00/ton Bagged yard waste
$5.00 per load Trash less than 200 lbs.

Landscape Companies:
$27.00/ton Unbagged yard waste
$29.00/ton Bagged yard waste

Cost of Compost Materials:
$18.00 for Small Pick-Up Load
$24.00 for Full-Size Pick-Up Load

Cost of Mulch (Double Shredded):
$18.00 for Small Pick-Up Load
$24.00 for Full-Size Pick-Up Load

Cost of Enriched Soil (Screened 40% compost and 60% soil):
$30.00 per cubic yard.

Rush Hour at the PWC Recycling Center 

The Prince William County Yard Waste Composting Facility is located at 13000 Balls Ford Road, Manassas, Virginia. The hours of operations are from Mondays through Saturdays from 7:30 am - 5:00 pm and Sundays from 9 am to 4:30 pm. For additional information visit their website at http://www.pwcgov.org/recycling.

 

Date Published: 2007-07-18 06:00:00

Section: Top Headline, Photos: Rush Hour at the PWC Recycling Center, Horizontal Grinder, Wind Row, Norma Judy, a PWC Employee., PWC Solid Waste Division Office, Prince William County Recycling Center,