Clean AER project stacks Sudbury's economy

One of Sudbury's most recognizable symbols — the superstack — is celebrating its 40th birthday this year.

The 1,250-foot structure was built in 1972 to disperse sulphur dioxide gas from Inco's Copper Cliff Smelter away from the city, preventing the environmental damage which characterized Sudbury at the time.

But the pollutants being pumped out of the stack have been drastically cut back over the years.

Prompted by stricter provincial environmental regulations, Vale, which bought out Inco in 2006, will be reducing sulphur emissions by another 70 per cent in the coming years.

The company plans to spend $2 billion on the project, known as Clean AER (Atmospheric Emissions Reduction).

Construction is expected to start in 2012, peaking in 2013 and early 2014, and is expected to be completed at the end of 2015.

Vale spokesperson Angie Robson said the company expects to formally announce the start of the project in the “very near future.”

“It's going to bring our sulphur dioxide emissions below regulatory limits,” Robson said.

“By the year 2015, the limit for sulphur dioxide emissions will be 66 kilotons per year. We expect that this project is going to bring us to about 45 kilotons per year. That's good news from an environmental standpoint.

“Ten or 20 years ago, if you were to tell people familiar with our operations that we would be at 45 kilotons on an annual basis, they would have said 'No way.' But we're doing it, and I think it's something that's not only something our company can be proud of, but our city as a whole.”

Although emissions are being brought lower and lower, Robson said Vale isn't ready to retire the superstack just yet.

It's possible, though, that one day there won't be any gases coming out of the structure, and it will grace the city's skyline as a monument, she said.
Robson said the Clean AER project is essentially “a complete retrofit” of the converter aisle at the Copper Cliff Smelter.

“What we're going to do is build a second acid plant,” she said.

“We've already got one acid plant. The emissions that go up the stack are going to be captured in this acid plant. It's also going to involve the construction of a new, secondary baghouse. This is essentially like a giant building which is a giant vaccuum cleaner to further capture emissions coming out.”

Sulphur dioxide gas won't be the only thing reduced through the project, Robson said.

Metal-containing dust emissions will also be reduced by 35 to 40 per cent because of the new baghouse, as well as measures such as watering the roads to reduce dust and covering stockpiles.

Vale has asked the Ministry of the Environment for more time to meet new environmental regulations as the Clean AER project is brought on line.

At the end of December, the ministry gave Vale permission to exceed air nickel standards over the next 10 years as it strives to reduce its emissions. The company has also made a similar request regarding sulphur dioxide, but a decision has yet to be made.

In the end, the retrofits mean citizens will be breathing cleaner air, Robson said. “It's something that will benefit all of us,” she said.

Ray Potvin, a member of Clean Air Sudbury, a community group focusing on air quality issues, said his group is in favour of the project.

“We all know in Sudbury that sometimes the emissions can reach the ground level after being emitted from the tall stack,” he said. “There will be fewer of those emissions. There will be less of an impact on the community.”

Beyond the environmental benefits, Robson said there will also be a positive impact on the city's economy.

Vale has already spent about $100 million on research, development and engineering related to the project, she said.

Contractors will be hired to build the Clean AER project, resulting in about 1,300 temporary jobs at the peak of construction, Robson said.

Sudbury mining supply and service companies will be involved in the project, although she said there may be out-of-town contractors working on it as well.
“One of the things we're looking at doing is further quantifying those benefits through an economic impact study,” Robson said.

“When you say you're spending $2 billion on a project, it's hard for anyone to wrap your head around what that means and how big a project that is. Suffice it to say, this is going to be very meaningful to Sudbury's economy over the next few years.”

Dick DeStefano, the executive director of the Sudbury Area Mining Supply and Service Association, (SAMSSA), which represents local companies which service the mining sector, said the Clean AER project would be great for his members.
However, until Vale formally announces the start of the project, he's cautious about getting his members' hopes up. Company officials have been reticent to provide any concrete details about the project, DeStefano said.

He said he expects Vale will hire a subcontractor to oversee the project.
“Hopefully, that subcontractor will be tendering to the local suppliers, who understand the makeup of refinery and the plant,” DeStefano said.

“$2 billion is a lot of money. I would expect to see some terrific benefits translate into us, as they usually do. I don't want to sound like a kiss-ass, but Vale's been really supportive of the local suppliers in the last two or three years. I would expect the same policy would apply on this major project.”

Once the Clean AER project is built, it will also need to be maintained, something which DeStefano said would translate into ongoing work for his members.

Laurentian University management professor Jean-Charles Cachon said the city's two major mining companies, Vale and Xstrata, generally “spend about 80 per cent of their improvement costs locally.”

“Right off the bat, you can expect that there's a direct spending of about $1.6 billion on a local basis,” he said. “That's a major impact.”

As well, the companies hired to work on this project will receive a boost to their reputation.

He gives the example of Bestech, a local engineering firm which was hired by Inco in the 1990s to develop pollution monitoring systems.

Because of their work with Inco, and later Vale, they've expanded from a company with two or three employees to one with 60 or 70 employees.

There are a “number of Bestechs” in Sudbury, or companies who have expanded simply because they're known for their work with large mining companies.

“Anybody developing new systems for Vale becomes a leading-edge company,” he said.

Posted by Arron Pickard