Sustainability at Interstate Resources: Interstate Paper Achieves 78% Fossil Fuel Reduction

Interstate Resources News homepage: http://news.interstateresources.com/

Interstate Resources has published a series of PDF files about the U.S.corrugated manufacturing group's sustainability efforts. Download this story at www.interstateresources.com/PDF/Interstate-Resources-Reduction-for-Fossil-Fuels.pdf.

Challenge

In order to serve the customer, support the community and protect natural resources, Interstate Paper needed to find a way to develop environmentally friendly energy, maximize efficiencies and still produce a competitive product.

Solution

Interstate Paper has been improving their sustainable efforts for years. They’ve consistently reached past the “good enough” benchmark by constantly re-evaluating and adjusting their environmental focus and initiatives. These ongoing endeavors consist of maximizing current infrastructure and resources, investing in continuous improvements, and committing to future modifications.

Here’s a quick snapshot of successful initiatives toward safeguarding the environment:

Investments

• Late 2003, Install Bubbling Fluidized Bed (BFB) Boiler
  
  - Provides 62% reduction in mill wide fossil fuel consumption
  - Supplies 45% of steam for mill
  - Utilizes a variety of non fossil fuels
  - Bark, wood waste
  - Green chips (pine plantation thinning)
  - Tire derived fuel (shredded discarded tires)
  - Sludge derived from recycling boxes / old corrugated containers (OCC)
  - Uses less than 10% fossil fuel for start-up, shutdown and stabilization
  
  
• 2007, Upgrade BFB
  
  - Improves air system, fuel feed system and ash handling
  - Provides improved boiler efficiency
  - Reduces fossil fuel an additional 39% compared to the previous best in 2006
  
  
• 2009, Upgrade Recovery Boiler Burner Management System
  
  - Improves boiler reliability
  - Provides 55% of the mill steam from black liquor (a tree by-product of producing pulp)
  - Uses less than 2% fossil fuel for start-up, shutdown and stabilization
  - Provides steam for the mill and recovers chemicals
  
  
• 2010, Super Heater Replacement Project
  
  - Improves reliability
  - Initiate project in 2009 with 2010 Installation
  
  

Results

• Fossil fuel, 78% reduction since 2003
  
• Water, 14% reduction (9 ½ million gallons of water a day from 11 million gallons a day
  
• Electricity, 40% from biomass
  
• Sulfur dioxide (a major contributor to acid rain), 60% reduction since 2003
  
• Steam reduction
  
• Particulates emission (tiny solid particles), 38% reduction due to:
  - Better BFB air pollution controls
  - Ability to run the mill without the Power Boiler

Being a privately owned paper mill provides the opportunity to focus on investments for long-term growth and to aggressively pursue environmental sustainability improvements. This is truly a biomass driven paper mill since 2003, with less than 14% fossil fuel used to make steam.

Interstate Paper is a member of Interstate Resources, Inc., a member of INDEVCO Group, the 'Local Multinational of the Middle East'.