Mexico-based steelmaker continues to grapple with years-old corruption charges.

Mexico-based steel producer Altos Hornos de México S.A.B. de C.V. (AHMSA) has filed a notice with the BMV stock exchange in Mexico indicating it is “effectively explor[ing] the possibility of [assigning] its subsidiary Minera del North S.A. de C.V. to Chapter 11 under United States law.”

The company is facing unique legal challenges in Mexico stemming from a charge of corruption levied against prior top officers. 

Thus, even in the face of one of the most profitable steel markets in decades, AHMSA is instead fighting to keep its operations running.

In the brief notice filed Oct. 21 with the BMV exchange, AHMSA says the filing may be necessary and can take place in the U.S. “given that one-third of [AHMSA’s] mining operations for the production of 6.6 million tons per year of thermal coal were developed in the United States and were paralyzed from the cancellation by the [Mexican] Federal Electricity Commission of orders and contracts for supply for its plants, which led to the loss of 4,000 direct jobs.”

Jimmy Whitehair and Will Denbo with Commercial Insurance Associates examine tools to manage risk and how operators have implemented them.

The waste and environmental services industry is becoming increasingly difficult to insure due to fire incidents, vehicular accidents and other on-the-job threats.

As previously reported by Waste Today, commercial insurers have seen steep increases, as premiums have risen anywhere from a minimum of 25 percent to well over 100 percent in recent years, and it is getting worse in 2020. Waste companies are feeling massive pressure from these increased insurance premiums, which in turn, erodes companies’ earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, or EBITDA, to the point that it is driving some operators to consider selling or even closing their doors.

At Waste Today’s 2021 Corporate Growth Conference, attendees will have the opportunity to hear from insurance professionals who specialize in the needs of the environmental, recycling and waste industries.

During the session Managing A Risk Profile In the Waste Industry, speakers Jimmy Whitehair and Will Denbo with Brentwood, Tennessee-based Commercial Insurance Associates (CIA) LLC will examine what tools exist to manage these risk factors and how operators have implemented them.

Denbo is the leader of CIA’s recycling and waste practice with more than 12 years of experience. He has been the driving force behind the recycling and waste practice since joining the ownership group of CIA in 2015, which includes developing exclusive insurance relationships, teaching clients/underwriters about the class and building the team as it stands today.

Whitehair has experience managing the workplace health and safety program for Bridgestone Americas in which 46,000 employees worked under his direction. This responsibility included 50 manufacturing plants across “The Americas” and included a variety of exposures in Canada, Mexico and the United States.

This experience has helped Whitehair craft customized loss control plans and broker far better risk management programs for clients within the recycling space.

This year’s Corporate Growth Conference will take place Nov. 4 at the Loews Chicago Hotel. To register, visit here.

The metal identification training program will provide a 25 percent discount to ISRI members.

Scrap University, a metals identification training program with offices based in British Columbia, has formalized an education agreement with the Washington-based Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI). According to the agreement, ISRI members can have access to Scrap University education, training and certification for discounted rates in excess of 25 percent.

The educational program offers a metal identification certification program. According to Scrap University, its Certified Scrap Metal Professional (CSMP) program covers the basics on most ferrous and nonferrous grades and offers users a series of online lessons, quizzes and a final exam. The program is designed to educate any role within an organization from laborer-level positions to executive-level positions. Scrap University says it designed the program to complement in-yard training.

According to a news release from Scrap University, the metals identification training program is only available in English, but there are plans to release a Spanish version of the course in the first quarter of 2022.

Peer-reviewed life cycle analysis of the company’s pyrolysis technology reveals it yields significant environmental savings.

San Francisco-based Brightmark has announced that a life cycle analysis of its pyrolysis-based process for mixed plastic scrap shows that it produces 39 percent to 139 percent fewer greenhouse gas emissions than equivalent products made using virgin materials. The Georgia Institute of Technology collected the data, with Environmental Clarity Inc. performing the analysis.

The life cycle analysis shows that plastics renewal provides 82 percent energy use savings, 46 percent water use savings and a 39 percent to 139 percent reduction in carbon footprint. The technology’s carbon footprint benefit was further found to be directly correlated to the extent to which a given country relied on incineration as a waste disposal method: In Europe, where 50 percent of plastics are incinerated, plastics renewal’s carbon footprint improvement jumps to 139 percent compared with equivalent virgin products.

“We commissioned this life cycle analysis so that we had total clarity on the environmental benefits offered by plastics renewal,” says Bob Powell, CEO and founder of Brightmark. “These are massive savings, and we’ll seek to continue improving our environmental impact as our work advances.”

Brightmark says the life cycle analysis included three groups of activities: plastics renewal and supply chain; the resulting avoided waste management system because of recycling; and the cradle-to-gate production of equivalent chemical products that would have to be made if recycling of waste plastics did not occur.

“Simply put, our life cycle analysis shows that products created by plastics renewal require 17 percent the amount of fossil fuels as the same family of hydrocarbon plastics made from virgin petroleum,” says Matthew Realff, a Georgia Tech professor. “These improvements are significant when comparing technologies to make these products from virgin resources.”

“Brightmark’s plastic renewal technology reduces fossil fuel extraction, reduces landfill and incineration of waste and cuts down carbon emissions relative to current practice,” say Evan Griffing and Michael Overcash from Environmental Clarity. “We believe efforts to scale advanced plastic recycling technologies like Brightmark’s solution will provide substantial environmental and sustainability benefits to society.”

Brightmark’s plastics renewal life cycle analysis was peer-reviewed in March 2021 and found to be detailed, verifiable and compliant with ISO 14041 and 14044, the company says.

An executive summary of the findings is available here.

A spokesman for Brightmark says the company continues to ramp up operations at its first commercial-scale site in Ashley, Indiana, site. The company also has announced plans to construct a second facility in Macon, Georgia, and to explore developing sites in Europe with BP. 

The suit alleges that Sims failed to demonstrate a minimum threshold reduction in uncontrolled emissions from its shredding facility.

Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul announced Oct. 22 that he has filed a lawsuit against Metal Management Midwest Inc., dba Sims Metal Management (Sims), for failing to demonstrate a minimum threshold reduction in uncontrolled emissions from its metal shredding and recycling facility. He also says the court entered an agreed interim order that requires Sims to develop and implement a control system designed to achieve an immediate overall reduction in uncontrolled emissions.

“Sims’ actions created a public health risk by exposing the community to uncontrolled emissions from its facility,” Raoul says in a news release announcing the suit and the interim order. “We have seen the damage these actions can cause in environmental justice communities, and I am committed to holding Sims accountable for endangering public health and will work to ensure they comply with emissions reductions requirements.”

 The lawsuit is based on a referral from the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA).

Illinois EPA Director John Kim says, “Based upon results from testing called for by the Illinois EPA, this matter was referred to the attorney general’s office to ensure that protections be put into place to address emissions concerns. The location of this facility in an environmental justice community reinforces the need for careful oversight of pollution sources such as this.”

The facility is in the Little Village neighborhood in Chicago. At the site, Sims receives, stores, recycles and ships ferrous and nonferrous recyclables, including end-of-life vehicles, major appliances and other postconsumer sheet metal and metal clips. The company’s hammermill shredder emits volatile organic material (VOM) into the environment, according to the EPA.

Sims submitted an application Jan. 22, 2019, for a Federally Enforceable State Operating Permit (FESOP) to the IEPA, as required by a previously entered administrative consent order with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. As part of its review of the application, the IEPA requested a copy of emissions testing results also required by the previously entered federal order. Based on a review of those results, the IEPA requested Sims initiate additional testing, with a proof-of-concept emissions capture test on the shredder May 13 to 14 of this year.

In the lawsuit, filed in Cook County Circuit Court, Raoul alleges that the results of the May emissions capture test revealed the shredder was achieving less than 50 percent estimated capture efficiency, which was below mandated emissions control requirements of at least 81 percent. He argues in the suit that by failing to demonstrate an overall reduction in VOM emissions, Sims violated the Illinois Environmental Protection Act and Illinois Pollution Control Board Air Pollution Regulations, jeopardizing public health and the environment.

Sims’ facility is in an area the IEPA has designated an area of environmental justice concern because it is a community with a percentage of low-income and/or minority residents that is greater than twice the statewide average.

The agreed interim order, entered Oct. 22, requires Sims to develop and implement a control system designed to achieve an overall reduction in uncontrolled VOM emissions of at least 81 percent from the shredder at the facility. Sims also will be required to construct a control system to achieve emissions reduction compliance, as approved by the IEPA, and continue to conduct emissions testing following construction to ensure uncontrolled emissions are reduced by at least 81 percent.

Sims provided the following statement to Recycling Today concerning the matter:

“Sims Metal was notified by the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency that we would need to retest the emissions from the shredder at our Paulina facility in Chicago, IL. Although the emissions reading was fully compliant with the levels outlined by the United States Environmental Protection Agency’s federal guidelines, we agreed to work with IEPA to favourably address this issue, modify our permit and install the advanced controls for both particulates and volatile organic compounds, rather than spend time on additional testing.

“For more than 100 years, Sims Metal has been at the center of the circular economy by recovering and recycling material to generate maximum value and minimize waste. Each year, we recycle 7.4 million tons of material globally that would otherwise go to landfill. We continue to invest in upgrades and improvements to the shredder at our Paulina facility, as well as lead by example to demonstrate best practices for other businesses in the area and serve the local community and economy.

“One of the foundations of a sustainable company is operating responsibly, and we are committed to operational excellence and upholding responsible and ethical business practices, which includes maintaining compliance with all relevant laws and regulations in the municipalities where we operate. It is worth noting that the shredder at our Paulina site is quite small in comparison to other shredders in the area, and it is the first of its size to have these controls installed.

“Our purpose, create a world without waste to preserve our planet, drives everything we do; and as a good corporate citizen, we are constantly reviewing our sustainability goals (partner for change, operate responsibly and close the loop) to ensure that we are living our purpose. These actions afford us with the opportunity to mitigate our own risks and amplify our impact. We will continue working with all of our community stakeholders and regulatory bodies to ensure that we are adhering to all relevant laws, maintaining safety standards and mitigating any harm to our local community.”

Environmental justice generally refers to a governmental response to the disparate environmental and public health impacts of pollution on minority and economically disadvantaged communities. Federal and state policies or regulations have been enacted to protect minorities and low-income citizens from disproportionately high exposure to pollution and heavy industrial activity historically located in or near such communities.

This is not the first action that has been taken against auto shredder operators in the city of Chicago.

In late 2017, the EPA requested air emissions testing at the former General Iron Industries site on the north side of Chicago. The air tests, supervised by the EPA in May and June 2018, resulted in a notice of violation regarding VOC emissions but found no emissions of metals or filterable particulate matter (PM) that violated permitted levels or applicable requirements.

General Iron, which formed a strategic partnership with Reserve Management Group (RMG) of Stow, Ohio, in mid-2018, installed a $2 million regenerative thermal oxidizer (RTO) at that site, which it said allowed the company to comply with and outperform a state requirement to reduce uncontrolled VOC emissions. Since the installation was completed in July of 2019, General Iron and the EPA agreed to an administrative consent order resolving the alleged violations the EPA issued the previous year.

The RTO was moved to Southside Recycling, the new auto shredding facility established by RMG on Chicago’s southside. However, environmental justice concerns have kept this facility from opening as scheduled. 

*Kwame Raoul was misidentified originally as the Chicago attorney general.