Madison Gas & Electric's cogeneration project hits 86% recycling rate

Daily Reporter (Milwaukee), Nov 18, 2004 by Jeremy Harrell

Even before Madison Gas & Electric Co.'s cogeneration power plant on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus fires up, the company and its waste consultant have found a large measure of success.

Through 13 months of construction on the $180 million job, MGE has achieved an 86 percent recycling rate, saving $87,000 in tipping fees and keeping 1,654 tons of materials from Dane County landfills.

This is a very successful recycling project, said Ralph McCall, project manager for consultant WasteCap Wisconsin. (The recycling rate) is a very good number for a large commercial project.

On Tuesday, WasteCap, MGE and other team leaders led builders, architects and engineers through a tour of the power plant, a joint venture between MGE and the University of Wisconsin-Madison that allows the utility to provide energy to its customers while funneling steam and chilled water to the campus for its own uses. The plant is scheduled for operation by next summer.

A project of this size consumes a staggering amount of materials. According to MGE's construction manager, Tim Bliefernicht, the cogen plant has required 955 steel H-piles, 14,000 cubic yards of concrete, 2,500 tons of structural steel and 485 precast concrete panels.

Coordination and cooperation

From the outset, MGE wanted to pursue an aggressive recycling program that included everything from materials used on the job to soda cans. Working with WasteCap and Pellitteri Waste Systems, the project team devised a three-stage recycling process that simplifies decisions for workers on the job.

During weekly safety meetings with workers, Rodney Washington, project safety engineer with Proactive Safety Consultants Inc., Milwaukee, covered regular toolbox-talk topics. But he also drummed into the more than 900 workers who have participated in the project the need to keep tabs on recycling their waste.

The (workers) on this project have been very cooperative, Washington said. I hope that this is a template for other projects that go up in the state.

The project team has so far:

e Recycled 17 tons of cardboard, the equivalent of 298 trees

e Recycled 170 tons of wood, the equivalent of 1,122 trees

e Recycled 500 tons of metal and 1,049 tons of concrete

WasteCap has also found markets to sell some salvaged and recyclable materials, and when those proceeds are combined with fewer trips to the landfill, the result is $87,000 in savings, according to WasteCap.