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February 5, 2004
Herald-Standard

GRCI envisions economic benefit

Mark Killar and fellow members of the Greater Redstone Clearwater Initiative (GRCI) have a vision of a clean Redstone Creek where people will take their kids fishing and canoeing.

"We know that if we can clean the stream, then we can improve the quality of life.  Businesses will be drawn to a stream like that.  It will be a big boost for the environment and the economy," said Killar.

Because many of the watershed's resources have been rendered unfit or undesirable , the GRCI and its volunteers are taking many challenges head on.

Killar said the GRCI is finishing up a report of stream and land assessments that will serve as a guide to restore Redstone Creek to its former glory.

"The GRCI has had this dream to see Redstone Creek run clean for a while," Killar said.  "Once the Phillips discharge is tackled and people can see how the stream can be, we are hoping and praying people will jump aboard and get involved in the organization to help us meet our vision for the watershed."

At one of Fayette County's worst sites for mine drainage, orange water flows into the creek, while a substance similar to rust sticks on the edges of the creek bank.  The orange substance is made up partially of iron and is from water discharged from an abandoned mine 25 feet away from the stream.

Killar noted that 4,500 gallons of discharge escape from the mines and drain into the creek near the village of Phillips in North Union Township.  The GRCI decided to start at Phillips to treat mine drainage and is looking into a number of ways to do so.

The Maelstrom Oxidizer is one of the treatment possibilities the group is considering.

Introduced at the GRCI montly board meeting Tuesday at Penn State Fayette, the Maelstrom Oxidizer system may provide an innovative and cost-effective method of removing iron from the water, allowing for cleaner streams, the very goal of GRCI.

"The system cleans the iron out naturally before it hits the stream," Killar said.  "It does what would happen in the stream before it hits the stream.  It is a relatively cheaper method of speeding up the process that would happen in a passive treatment system."

"But we are lucky in a way, because the Phillips discharge is not acid, but there's a lot of iron in it and the iron becomes the culprit we need to get rid of," he added.  "Our group knew from the very beginning that if we didn't rid the Phillips area of discharge, there's no way to clear Redstone Creek."

Don Budeit, a representative with Environmental Solutions LLC, patented the method.

During a slide presentation, Budeit said the system uses natural processes to treat mine drainage.  Budeit said that, compared to a passive treatment system, which requires 42 acres of land and is costly, the Maelstrom Oxidizer is more cost-efficient and requires only 2 acres of land for the system and its treatment pond.

He and his partner, Jim Oliver, conducted studies of the Phillips discharge and estimated a total capital cost of $623,888.  This cost is in addition to an annual operating cost of $14,650.

"Seventy-five cents will be saved out of every dollar," said Budeit.

Compared to a passive treatment system, the Maelstrom Oxidizer saves more than $1 million in total capital costs and more than $73,000 in total annual costs, noted Budeit.

In addition, Budeit mentioned the possibility of a returned profit through iron oxide gained by drying processed sludge.  This sludge contains 10 percent iron and 90 percent water.

The iron proved marketable in the last three years, Budeit said.  He added that his system will retrieve a higher percentage of the iron from the water than the passive system.

"Sludge is 10 percent iron and 90 percent water initially in the pond," said Budeit.  "When it's dry it's going to be 90 to 100 percent iron."

"We like to believe we are on the cutting edge here," said Budeit.  "It's a lot of iron and a lot of money, if you've got the market for it.  Save it if you can because it will have value.  It is not a valuable commodity at this point because we haven't figured out a way to take it, process it and sell it to break over, but these answers may come in the next year and they would be money laying on the ground to pick up."

As fine as a powder, the iron, when efficiently processed, packaged and shipped, can prove to be a high-quality iron pigment used in virtually any product that requires a brown tint.  Cosmetic companies and paint manufacturers are in the market to purchase the iron for makeup powder, paints and stains.

"This iron recovery process was developed a few years ago," said Budeit.  "Sewickley Creek shipped it down and processed it themselves."

Since an effective method has not been discovered that will return a sizeable profit from selling the iron, Budeit said his company can dig a small recovery pond used to store the iron for future use.

"We can pump out 60 parts of iron," added Budeit.  "There is a quite sizable amount of this product used in the United States."

In addition to the GRCI representatives, officials from the National Park Service, Jacobs Creek Watershed Association, Earthtech, Inc., Dick Corporation and the state Department of Environmental Protections, and the Fayette County Conservation District attended Tuesday's meeting."