6019_Mecklenburg_Compost_AppPTOApproved_DIN27366_20170327

4600 Park Road, Suite 240
Charlotte, North Carolina 28209
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]
February 2, 2017
Mr. Larry Frost
North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality
Division of Waste Management – Solid Waste Section
Asheville Regional Office
2090 U.S. Hwy 70
Swannanoa, North Carolina 28778
Subject:Mecklenburg County, North Carolina
Foxhole Landfill
Transmittal Letter Requesting Permit Modification to include Type 1 Compost Facility
Permit No. 60-19
Dear Mr. Frost:
On behalf of Mecklenburg County (County), CDM Smith Inc. (CDM Smith) is pleased to submit this
transmittal letter requesting a modification of the Foxhole Landfill’s Permit to include a Type 1
Composting Facility. In addition to this letter, please find the Compost Operation and Maintenance
Manual for Mecklenburg Foxhole Landfill. If you have any questions during the review of this material,
please do not hesitate to contact me at [phone].
Sincerely,
Bridget Wlosek
CDM Smith Inc.
cc:M. Sanford, P.E, CDM Smith
A. Grzymski, Mecklenburg County
Compost
Operation and Maintenance Manual
for
Mecklenburg County Foxhole Landfill
Permit #60-19
February 2017
Operation & Maintenance Manual
Mecklenburg County
Foxhole Landfill
Table of Contents
General Information ........................................................................................1
Quality Assurance Plan ...................................................................................2
Inspection of Incoming Material .....................................................................2
Material Preparation........................................................................................2
Composting Process ........................................................................................3
Final Product ...................................................................................................3
Closure Procedures..........................................................................................4
Equipment .......................................................................................................4
Site Safety .......................................................................................................4
Contingency Plan ............................................................................................5
Equipment Breakdown....................................................................................5
Non-conforming Waste ...................................................................................5
Fire Contingency .............................................................................................5
Vectors and Odors ...........................................................................................6
Reporting and Recordkeeping .........................................................................6
Appendices
Appendix A – Foxhole Compost Facility Map
Appendix B – Foxhole Compost Process Flow Chart
Appendix C – Stormwater Flow Maps
Appendix D – Signature Page
1
General Information
The purpose of this document is to identify protocols for the overall operation and maintenance
of a Type 1 Yard Waste Composting Facility (Facility) at the HWY 521 Foxhole Landfill located
at 17131 Lancaster Highway, Charlotte, NC 28277. The Facility will be located within the
permitted facility boundary of the HWY 521 Foxhole Subtitle D Landfill (Permit #60-19).The
landfill site encompasses 565 acres located on Highway 521 in Southern Mecklenburg County
bordering Union County, NC and Lancaster County, SC. The Facility will be located in two
areas within those 565 acres as shown in Figure 1 in Appendix A. The multi-material
processing area (location of windrows/curing area) will be approximately 6 acres and the
receiving and grinding area will be approximately 2.5 acres.
This operation plan provides details of the procedures and policies, which shall be implemented
throughout the operation of the compost facility specifically. Yard waste (includes yard trash and
LCID materials), wooden pallets consisting of untreated and unpainted natural wood, and
silvicultral waste are accepted at this facility. Most of the yard waste brought to the facility is
woody waste. The woody waste that can be made into mulch or boiler fuel is processed and sold
at the facility. The remaining material will be composted on site or transferred to another
permitted facility. The yard waste will only be accepted from Mecklenburg and Union Counties,
North Carolina and Lancaster County, South Carolina.
All customers disposing of material and customers purchasing products must cross the scale at
the scale house. All incoming material is weighed with the exception of pick-up and automobile
traffic. These customers are charged by the size of vehicle and their weight is based upon
historical data. Material being sold (compost, mulch, nuggets, etc.) are sold on a per cubic yard
basis. In addition, material sent out as boiler fuel in tractor trailers is tracked on a per load basis
(100 cubic yards per load).
The required contact information is as follows:
Applicant/Receiver of permit fee invoices:
Joe Hack
Mecklenburg County Solid Waste
2145 Suttle Avenue
Charlotte, NC 28208
980-314-3855
[e-mail]
Landowner:Engineer:
Jeffery Smithberger Bridget Wlosek
Mecklenburg County – Solid Waste Director CDM Smith Inc.
2145 Sutte Avenue 4600 Park Rd St. 240
Charlotte, NC 28208 Charlotte, NC 28209
980-314-3863 704-342-4546
[e-mail] [e-mail]
2
Quality Assurance Plan
Inspection of Incoming Material
1.Approximately 1,000 tons of woody waste and 68,000 tons of mixed yard waste are
anticipated to be received at the facility per year. Please reference the process flow diagram
provided in Appendix B for the design capacity of the facility.
2.Materials to be composted will include yard waste, land clearing debris, green waste, and
clean wood (pallets). Seasonal variations in material may include surplus grass clippings
in the spring and leaves in the late fall or early winter.
3.The cashier initially performs visual screening of incoming material at the time it is being
weighed. The inspection is to insure the county of origin and that no municipal solid waste,
recyclables, household hazardous waste, treated wood, dirt or other contaminants are in the
load.
4.If any of these items are detected at this time, the customer is directed to dispose of the
materials either at appropriate on-site location or at another appropriate approved disposal
facility.
5.On-site compost facility staff perform secondary screening in the yard waste area. These
operators inspect the material both at the time of tipping as well as immediately before the
material is placed into the tub grinders to ensure that material type as well as size are
appropriate to be processed by the grinders.
6.Should any non-conforming waste be detected by the operators during grinding operations,
the waste will be removed from the yard waste area and disposed of properly.
Material Preparation
1.After inspection, the material is processed through a grinder.
2.The ground material is then removed from the processing area and either placed into
windrows for composting, sold as mulch or shipped off site for use in other markets. The
material will be hauled to the composting area using an off road dump truck.
3.All windrows will be no more than 30 feet high and 50 feet wide. A minimum distance of
25 feet will be maintained between individual windrows.
4.Upon placement of the material into windrows, moisture requirements are determined by
performing a squeeze test of the material:
a.A handful of material is gathered and squeezed in one hand.
b.If the material does not stay in a ball, but falls apart after squeezing it, the moisture
is probably below 50%.
3
c.If the material stays in a ball and little or no moisture drips from the ball, then this
is interpreted as 40%-60% moisture – the optimum moisture content.
d.If water is dripping from the ball of material, then moisture content is most likely
above 65%.
5.Natural rainfall usually provides enough water to keep the moisture content of the material
at optimum conditions. In the event of a low rainfall period, water hydrants are located on
site to provide additional water to maintain optimal moisture content in the windrows.
Additional equipment may be used as needed to incorporate moisture in the process.
6.In normal operations, high nitrogen yard wastes are incorporated into windrows as soon as
possible to minimize odors. All yard waste, including green waste (grass clippings), under
normal operating conditions is processed through the grinder in a timely manner. The
grinding process gives the material its initial charge of oxygen for its aerobic
decomposition. Under normal operating conditions, the material is then incorporated into
windrows within a timely manner if space is available or is sent out to be used in other
markets.
Composting Process
1.Generally, the windrowed material will be turned as needed using mechanized equipment
suitable for the operation. Material will be turned to maintain aerobic conditions and
maximize composting operations.
2.Throughout the composting process the material is monitored qualitatively for moisture
content and aesthetics.
3.Temperature measurements will be collected once a week to ensure that compost is
maintained at or above 55oC (131oF) for at least three (3) days. The material will be aerated
as needed using mechanized equipment to ensure temperatures are being maintained. The
temperature will be measured with a four-foot thermometer fully inserted toward the cross-
sectional center of the windrow. A ReoTemp Heavy Duty Compost Thermometer will be
used and calibrated at least once per year or as needed.
4.In wet weather, windrowed material will be turned with tracked equipment. Figure 2 and
Figure 3 in Appendix C show the direction of storm water flow for the composting area
and yard waste receiving/grinding area respectively. Stormwater will be diverted to ditches
located on all sides of the composting area. Windrows will be oriented perpendicular to the
flow of stormwater to reduce contact runoff.
Final Product
1.The compost material is turned regularly until the internal temperature falls below 55 °C.
2.Upon reaching the desirable temperature the material is screened to remove any off-spec
material.
4
3.The material not passing the screen is returned to the grinding area for reprocessing.
Residues and off-spec materials generated from the composting process may also be sold
as a supplemental fuel, disposed of in an approved disposal facility, or used on site for
erosion control purposes.
4.The material passing the screen is placed in a curing pile separate from the rest of the
facility for ultimate distribution or on-site use. The curing pile will be located in the
multi-material processing area as shown in Figure 1.
5.The finished compost will be sold primarily to residents, landscapers, and landscape
supply companies for use as a soil amendment. Mecklenburg County will continue to
explore various markets as they become available.
Closure Procedures
1.Please refer to Landfill Permit for closure plans.
2.If operations should close or become inactive for at least 60 days, material will be
diverted to other permitted sites.
Equipment
1.Onsite equipment includes a CAT 336 Trackhoe, Volvo L70 loader, Volvo A30F Dump
Truck, CAT D6TLGP Bulldozer, Peterbuilt 4000 gallon water truck, and a CAT 322M
Rubber Tire Backhoe.
2.Mobile equipment includes a Diamond Z Tub Grinder 1460b and a 621 McClaskey
Trommel Screen.
3.Please refer to the Landfill Permit for equipment maintenance procedures.
Site Safety
1.All employees are provided with the appropriate personal protective equipment while
operating grinders or other equipment. Grinding of material is performed away from
customers.
2.Safety training for employees is conducted on a monthly basis or as needed.
3.County staff will be on duty at the site at all times while the facility it open for public use
in order to ensure compliance with operational requirements.
4.In the event of heavy or unusual traffic, on site staff will direct traffic and add additional
signs if necessary.
5
Contingency Plan
Equipment Breakdown
1.All equipment has at least one backup within the solid waste organization. If no backup
equipment is available, rental equipment will be acquired. The concern that all pieces of a
specific kind of equipment are out of service for any period of time is minimal.
2.In the event of a power outage, the scale house is equipped with a back-up generator.
Non-conforming Waste
1.All waste is screened as described in the Quality Assurance Plan. Waste not conforming to
the facility’s compost permit will be redirected to the appropriate location at the facility
and disposed of accordingly.
2.Should waste not conforming to the facility’s permit be received at the tipping area, any
contaminants are immediately loaded back onto the vehicle from which it came and are
redirected to a proper solid waste management facility.
3.Should any non-conforming waste be detected by the operators during grinding operations,
the waste is removed from the site to be disposed of in a proper solid waste management
facility.
4.Mecklenburg County may use this facility to process storm debris and vegetative material
during inclement weather situations. The amount of material to be processed on site could
exceed the design amount by more than 100%.
Adverse Weather Conditions
1.During adverse weather conditions such as strong winds, heavy rain, snow or freezing
weather, turning and grinding of material will be suspended.
2.All roads will be cleared with onsite equipment while receiving material in icy/snowy
weather conditions.
Fire Contingency
1.The local Fire Department station will be made aware of the facility and the nature of its
operation.
2.Threat of fire is minimized by not allowing stock piles to age over four weeks and by
keeping its volume to a minimum.
3.Water truck is located on site in case of fire.
6
4.All pieces of equipment will include a fire extinguisher.
Vectors and Odors
1.Vectors are rarely a problem for yard waste (Type I) composting facilities.
2.The timely manner in which yard waste is ground and placed into windrows will assist in
the prevention of vectors.
3.To minimize odors, incoming yard waste will be ground in a timely manner under normal
operating conditions. Ground yard waste will either be placed in a windrow or removed
from the site. Material will be turned as needed to ensure that aerobic conditions prevail.
To minimize airborne particles, moisture may be incorporated into materials when needed.
4.At the end of each operating day, the unloading area will be clean and all yard waste will
be processed or properly stored.
Reporting and Record keeping
1.An annual report, covering the period from July 1 to June 30, will be submitted to the North
Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (NCDEQ) by August 1 for the prior year.
The annual report shall contain the information as contained in Section 1408 of the North
Carolina Solid Waste Management Rules.
Note:Monitoring records are maintained for five years and are available for inspection by division personnel.
Records include daily quantity of processed material, temperature data, quantity and source of material
received, and the quantity and type of material removed for the use or disposal by product classification
and the market or permitted disposal facility.

Appendix A
Foxhole Compost Facility Map

L A N C A S T E R
0 430 860215Feet4
Foxhole Compost Facility Map
Yard Waste Receiving/Grinding Area
Scale House
Multi-Material Processing Area
Landfil Phase 1
Landfill Phase 2
Recycling Area
Mutli-Material Processing Area

Appendix B
Foxhole Compost Process Flow Chart

Mecklenburg County
Foxhole Yard Waste Process Flow Chart
1,000 tons 68,000 tons
172,000 yd3 100,000 yd3
43,000 tons 25,000 tons

1,000 tons
4,000 yd3
500 lb/yd3
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1,080 lb/yd3

68,800 yd3
37,152 tons
6,880 yd3
3,715.2 tons
10%
61,920 yd3
33,436.8 tons
Mixed Yard Waste
Receiving
Grinding
Woody Waste
Receiving
Hardwood Mulch
Product to be sold
Windrow Composting
(Approx. 6 months)
(60% Vol Reduction)
Boiler Fuel/
On Site UseWater
windrows as
needed
Compost
Screening
Finished Compost
Product to be sold
Grinding
On site use/ Re-
compost

Appendix C
Stormwater Flow Maps

0 160 32080Feet4
Stormwater Flow for Multi-Material Processing Area
0 80 16040Feet4
Foxhole YW Receiving and Grinding Area
Grinding Area
YW Receiving
Product Sales

Appendix D
Signature Page