A change in how Southeastern Public Service Authority (SPSA) operates may endanger the power supplied to the Norfolk Naval Shipyard in Portsmouth, ME. 13NewsNow reports that SPSA supplies mission-critical steam power to the naval yard under a waste-to-energy program through a contract with Wheelabrator Technologies. The Portsmouth firm annually takes in about 700,000 tons of solid waste and generates 600 million pounds of steam.
The story says that SPSA is considering increasing its use of landfills, which it says is cheaper. SPSA said that they don’t want to impede naval operations, but the possible move is being driven by higher than necessary costs to subscribers. A decision is expected during the first quarter of next year. The contract with Wheelabrator last through 2018.
Lancaster Online notes that it has been two decades between the opening of waste-to-energy facilities. Montgomery County, MD, opened on in 1995. That was it until Palm Beach, FL, opened a couple of facilities. The writer notes that progress has been made in Europe.