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114 <br />Comprehensive Review of <br />Solid Waste Collection and Disposal Options <br />• Ancillary costs (transmission line, etc.); and, <br />• Contractual obligations. <br />However in SCS's opinion, these summary costs for alternative WC technologies suggest that <br />tipping fee ranges are likely to be somewhat higher than a WTE plant, until enough of the plants <br />are operating and hard costs are generated to validate that they can operate at a tipping fee <br />comparable to a WTE plant. <br />12.6.7 Advantages and Disadvantages <br />All of the alternative WC technologies have some potential benefits and disadvantages. The <br />over - riding aspect of all of the alternative WC technologies is that they are relatively new and <br />thus do not have a "track record" from which one can derive hard conclusions related to actual, <br />proven benefits and disadvantages. So, SCS can only postulate what the actual advantages, <br />disadvantages, and economics might be. This exercise is based on assessing the information <br />available from vendors, review of operational history for some very small -scale pilot plant <br />facilities that may have operated intermittently, and evaluation of these technologies that are <br />processing waste streams other than a normal mixed municipal solid waste. <br />Exhibit 12 -19 summarizes the advantages and disadvantages of the alternative technologies and <br />the WTE technology. We offer the following generalized conclusions, in addition to the <br />comments in the table, about the viability of the teclnnologics: <br />• Biological (anaerobic). Commercial scale proven at smaller capacities (i.e., 200 to <br />300 tons per day) in Europe. Developing a consistent market for the compost by- <br />product is a major challenge and affects the operating economics. Only a few sjnall <br />scale plants are currently planned in the U.S. <br />• Thermal. Generally unproven at a commercial scale. One small pilot facility (85 tons <br />per day) is operating in Canada. A complex process that must be optimized to <br />provide the desired high- quality synfuel. There is much planning activity in the <br />industry and in the next 5 years there will likely be some operational plants to better <br />demonstrate the potential scalability and viability of these technologies. <br />Bio- Chemical. Unproven at a commercial scale. A few plants have been planned, but <br />have been delayed. Tied to the dynamic market for ethanol and competition with <br />many other processes that do not use MSW. <br />v2.1 180 10/22/12 <br />