Halifax C & D Tire Recycling Facility: Layout Plan Details

Below is a site plan for Halifax C&D's Tire Recycling Facility. The accompanying zone by zone activity description tracks the recycling process from the moment a tire enters the facility.

Zone A: Security Infrastructure

Chain-linked security fencing will enclose all aspects of the tire processing and TDA storage area;
Entrance gates will be open only during scheduled hours of operation and will be locked during non-operating periods;
24-hour security presence on-site, including surveillance cameras;
Light poles installed around the periphery of the site will provide adequate lighting during non-daylight hours;
All vehicles and visitors must report to the scale house immediately upon entering the tire processing facility and will be directed and/or escorted by site staff to the appropriate location on-site;
The security infrastructure for the site is a critical component of the overall Fire Safety Plan that is being developed in collaboration with the Provincial Fire Marshall's office and Halifax Regional Fire and Emergency Services and in accordance with the most recent National Fire Code; emergency response capability will be formulated and implemented prior to start-up of processing operations.

Zone B: Tire Receiving Area

The designated tire receiving area on-site will consist of a covered 12,000 square foot open-walled structure. The interior of the structure will be comprised of a series of three-meter high concrete separation barriers set roughly nine meters apart to provide an orderly and manageable interim storage system and serve as fire-resistance rated barriers to minimize any fire risk;
All incoming tire loads will be weighed at the scale house and then unloaded onto the concrete floor surface of the covered receiving area; the roof coverage will help to keep tires out of the elements (particularly snow and rain) and will help to make handling easier and safer for staff;
Following an initial visual inspection and sorting of the incoming tires, eligible tires will then be transferred to the processing facility by a grapple-equipped loader on an on-going basis; any contaminated tires or tires with rims will be segregated into a cast concrete block bunker for follow-up action (eg. de-rimming).

Zone C: Tire Processing Building

The tire processing building will house a new industry-proven shredder unit that will mechanically shred whole tires into ASTM D6270 specified shred size for use as TDA;
Whole tires will be re-located from the tire receiving area to the processing facility by a grapple-equipped loader and placed near the shredder unit; all tires will then undergo a final visual inspection (to ensure they are free of foreign materials that could damage the shredder equipment) before they are placed onto a feed conveyor for delivery into the shredder unit;
Use of the high-capacity shredder unit will maximize process efficiency and minimize the amount of whole tires that need to be stored on the site at any given time. All whole tires received each day can be shredded within four to eight hours;
The operation of the shredder unit will not contribute any perceptible noise outside the enclosed tire processing building;
No heat or chemicals will be used during the tire shredding process, and no dust or other airborne emissions will be released from the tires as they are shredded;
Shred product will be discharged from the processing facility into an open-top live-floor trailer and then re-located to the designated concrete block bunkers for interim storage prior to delivery to end-use project sites.

Zone D: TDA (Shred) Storage

TDA (shred) will be stored in a series of cast concrete block bunkers to facilitate an orderly, manageable storage system that provides an effective fire-resistance rated buffer between individual storage units in accordance with National Fire Code (2005) requirements;
An impermeable asphalt surface underlying the outdoor storage area will be maintained free of debris and aggregate materials in order to minimize dust and preserve the quality of the shred material;
Any run-off from the TDA storage area will be contained by perimeter swales on the asphalt surface and discharged to the water reservoir facility (see following Zone E details);
The shred storage bunker system is capable of handling up to 7100 mT of shred on an interim basis prior to delivery to end-use project site locations;
Shred will be loaded in the storage area and transported to project sites via tarped open-top live-floor trailer units commonly used to haul wood chips and other recycled materials;
A sand/dirt stockpile is located adjacent to the shred storage area for use as an additional fire fighting measure and can be quickly accessed with on-site heavy loader equipment to smother any incidental fires before they have time to spread;
A minimum of 15 m of clearance will be maintained between stored shred and the property lines of the site or any buildings on-site.

Zone E: Reservoir / Water Supply

A reservoir capable of holding 1.5 million litres of water has been constructed on-site;
The reservoir will be lined and will collect normal/storm run-off water from the site; it will also provide a small volume of process water needed for the shredding operation;
Water quality in the reservoir will be monitored on an on-going basis and excess water will be tested to ensure it is acceptable for release from the reservoir;
A pump house with water access fittings, along with 2 dry hydrants located immediately adjacent to the reservoir, will allow fire response agencies to access the reservoir water supply in the event of an on-site fire;
In the unlikely event of a fire, any liquid run-off from on-site fire fighting activities will be contained by the asphalt surface swales and directed to the water reservoir where it can be pumped directly into tanker trucks and disposed of in accordance with provincial regulations;
In addition to monitoring surface water quality in the reservoir, up-gradient and down-gradient groundwater quality will also be monitored to ensure there is no impact on groundwater quality by site activities.

For further information, please contact:

Dan Chassie
Office: (902) 876-8644
Email: dchassie@halifaxcdrecycling.ca

Nick Russell
Office: (902) 876-8644
Email: nrussell@halifaxcdrecycling.ca