A meat processing plant limits environmental impact and stays operational

A large meat processing plant at operates on New Zealand’s South Island. As part of its operational requirements, the facility uses a large boiler that emits fine particles. In a proactive effort to stay ahead of compliance and protect nearby communities, Alliance’s environmental advisors developed recommended licence conditions for the site to avoid regulatory fines for exceedance. The conditions were endorsed by a regulatory process.

The site's environmental advisors worked with Alliance on a scheme to ensure it meets the licence conditions that limit 24-hour average particle concentrations. Particles emitted from the boiler would need to be monitored in real-time and fed into a dynamic control algorithm to predict potential breaches of the licence conditions. The operations team would need to be alerted if the 24-hour average concentration was predicted to approach the criterion so they could adjust operations to limit impact from the boiler.  Data on particle concentrations would need to be analysed, and routinely reported for evidence of compliance.

Envirosuite’s EVS Omnis software was selected to monitor and display particle emissions from the large boiler in real-time, using an intuitive dashboard that incorporates the control algorithm. It is configured to alert Alliance operational staff if the boiler emissions are at risk of exceeding the licence condition. The system’s automated reporting feature also provides analysis of elevated particle readings, and receives site-specific historical weather reports that are related to particle emission impacts. At any time, the operational team is able to retrieve historical data from the software as proof it is being proactive in addressing the licence requirements.

The operations team is able to operate with confidence knowing it can satisfy regulators and avoid scrutiny by meeting licence conditions. Operators are able to access all historical reports in an instant and create detailed reporting of the site’s environmental impact for transparency with regulators. If there’s any risk of exceedances, the team can now adjust operations to limit impact at critical times and maintain compliance with licence conditions.