Hazardous Waste Program

Lone Star Industries Inc. dba Buzzi Unicem USA

EPA ID# MOD981127319

DNR Contact:       Nathan Kraus, 573-751-3553 or 800-361-4827
EPA Contact:       Ken Herstowski, 913-551-7631 or 800-223-0425
Facility Contact:   Bradley Meyr, 573-335-8878
Last Updated:       Dec. 7, 2011

What’s New

Draft Class 3 Permit Modifications Prepared: On Oct. 28, 2011, Lone Star Industries Inc. submitted a Class 3 Permit Modification request to the department and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 7, requesting to modify their existing Missouri Hazardous Waste Management Facility Part I Permit and Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments Part II Permit. The company requested the modifications be addressed before renewal of its hazardous waste permit. The department and EPA invite the public to review and offer written comments on the draft permit modifications until May 21.

The department will hold a public availability session about the draft permit modifications on May 3, from 6 pm to 8 pm, at the Marquette Natatorium. The Natatorium is located at 2701 S. Sprigg St. in Cape Girardeau. The public is encouraged to attend the public availability session to ask questions, share information and discuss issues with the facility, department and EPA. Individuals requiring special services or accommodations in order to attend the meeting can make arrangements by contacting Heidi Rice at least 72 hours before the meeting at 573-291-1417 or 800-361-4827 or by email. Hearing- and speech-impaired individuals may reach Rice through Relay Missouri at 800-735-2966. During the 45-day public comment period, anyone can request a public hearing about the draft permit modifications. To request a public hearing, please submit a written hearing request by mail to either Nathan Kraus or Ken Herstowski at the address below. The hearing request must state what issues will be brough up during the hearing.

Lone Star uses fuel in two locations in the kiln system, the rotary kiln and calciner. Coal is the main fuel used in the kiln system, supplemented with non-hazardous waste fuels, such as tires and used oil, and solid and liquid hazardous waste fuels. Lone Star is currently permitted to use hazardous waste fuel only in the rotary kiln portion of the kiln system. Lone Star proposed to modify both permits to first test the use of liquid hazardous waste fuel in the calciner. If successful, they would like to use hazardous waste fuel in the calciner permanently. Lone Star would also like to add more types of hazardous waste that may be used at the facility and increase their treatment capacity. The department prepared the draft Missouri Hazardous Waste Management Facility Part I Permit Modifications. EPA prepared the draft Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments Part II Permit Modifications. The draft permit modifications propose to allow Lone Star to use hazardous waste fuel in the calciner, accept additional hazardous waste codes and increase their treatment capacity per day for drum processing.

The public can review and copy the permit modification request, draft Part I Permit Modifications, draft Part II Permit Modifications and supporting documents at the locations above. Comments on the draft permit modifications are more effective if they point out legal or technical issues. Only the conditions being modified are open for public comment. All other conditions of the original permits will remain in effect until the permit renewal under review is finalized and the permit is reissued. You may submit written comments on the draft Part I Permit Modification online or send comments by mail to Nathan Kraus, Missouri Department of Natural Resources, Hazardous Waste Program, P.O. Box 176, Jefferson City, MO 65102-0176. Written comments on the draft Part II Permit Modifications may be submitted by email or sent by mail to Ken Herstowski, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 7, Waste Remediation and Permitting Branch, 901 N. Fifth St., Kansas City, KS 66101.

Permit Application for Renewal Complete: The department is inviting the public to review and offer written comments on Lone Star Industries Inc.’s permit renewal application while the department conducts a technical review of the permit application. The public can review and copy the permit application and supporting documents at the locations above. Comments on the permit application are effective if they point out legal or technical issues. You may submit written comments online or send comments by mail to Nathan Kraus, Missouri Department of Natural Resources, Hazardous Waste Program, P.O. Box 176, Jefferson City, MO 65102-0176 .

Facility Description

Lone Star Industries Inc., doing business as (dba) Buzzi Unicem USA, is located on about 2,023 acres at 2524 S. Sprigg St. in Cape Girardeau. The Harrison Interests began operating a cement plant at the site in 1910. By 1923, the facility was purchased by The Marquette Co., who immediately began a major improvement project. In 1957, The Marquette Co. installed a new “wet process” plant at the site. In 1977, designs were initiated for construction of a “dry process” preheater/precalciner plant to replace the existing wet process plant. The new plant, which is more energy efficient, was put into operation in April 1981. In April 1982, Lone Star Industries Inc. acquired The Marquette Co. and the Cape Girardeau plant. The Marquette Co. and Lone Star merged into a single corporation, Lone Star Industries Inc., in 1987. Dyckerhoff Inc. acquired Lone Star in 1999 and Buzzi Unicem, a majority stockholder of Dyckerhoff, took over operation of the company in January 2004.

Lone Star currently operates a dry process rotary cement kiln with a four-stage preheater and a precalciner. The kiln produces clinker, the main ingredient in Portland cement. The cement production process involves crushing and grinding raw material; such as limestone, fireclay, and shale; into a fine dust. Lone Star feeds the raw material, in dry powder form, into a preheater/precalciner tower that is made up of a series of cyclones. As the powder slowly falls through the cyclones, it is mixed with increasingly hot gasses from the kiln. The powder enters the kiln when it has been heated to a point to start the chemical reaction that makes clinker. The clinker is then ground with gypsum to make cement. A byproduct of the cement production process is a fine chalky powder waste known as cement kiln dust. Lone Star regularly tests the dust to make sure that it is exempt from being a hazardous waste. The dust is placed in on-site landfills. 

Lone Star uses mainly coal to heat their kiln system. To supplement its fuel needs, Lone Star also uses non-hazardous waste fuels, such as shredded plastics, sawdust and used oil, and solid and liquid hazardous wastes fuels. Lone Star is currently permitted to use hazardous waste fuel only in the rotary kiln portion of the kiln system. Lone Star has been using specific types of hazardous waste as a fuel since April 1992. Most of the hazardous waste comes from off-site hazardous waste generators or third party hazardous waste blenders or brokers. Lone Star receives the hazardous waste in bulk tanker trucks and 55-gallon drums. The solid hazardous waste is put into 3½-gallon pails and shot into the rotary kiln using an air cannon. The liquid hazardous wastes are “blended” with other hazardous waste to achieve desired characteristics such as BTU value and metals and chlorine content. The resulting wastes are stored in tanks until they are fed to the rotary kiln as liquid fuel. 

Lone Star currently operates two hazardous waste container storage areas: the drum storage building with a capacity of 54,000 gallons and five truck storage bays with a capacity of 6,000 gallons in each bay; and a tank farm consisting of six 40,000-gallon hazardous waste storage/blend tanks, two 150,000-gallon hazardous waste storage/blend/burn tanks and one 1,100-gallon disperser tank. Lone Star stores and treats characteristic hazardous waste and various “F, K, P, and U” listed hazardous wastes as specified in its permit application.

Corrective Action Status

All hazardous waste treatment, storage and disposal facilities are required to investigate and clean up hazardous waste releases at their facility resulting from present and past hazardous waste handling practices. In 1993, PRC Environmental Management Inc. performed a Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, or RCRA, Facility Assessment for the site, on behalf of EPA. The assessment was conducted to identify and gather information on potential or actual releases of hazardous waste and hazardous constituents to the environment. The RCRA Facility Assessment Report, dated Sept. 30, 1993, identified 56 solid waste management units, or SWMUs, and 7 areas of concern, or AOCs; of which 15 SWMUs and 4 AOCs required more investigation.

In response to the assessment, Lone Star investigated the SWMUs and AOCs with department oversight. The results of these activities are documented in a Solid Waste Management Unit, Corrective Action Evaluation Report, dated April 1995, and follow-up Summary Report Solid Waste Management Units and Areas of Concern, dated Aug. 27, 1996. Based on review of these documents, the department determined that all issues associated with the SWMUs and AOCs had been adequately addressed and no further corrective action was necessary at that time. Lone Star continues to monitor, operate and maintain the cement kiln dust landfill.  

Hazardous Waste Permit Status

Lone Star Industries is operating under two hazardous waste permits, one issued by the department and one issued by EPA. The department issued the Missouri Hazardous Waste Management Facility Part I Permit, effective Feb. 16, 1999. EPA issued the Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments Part II Permit, effective March 18, 1999. These permits allow Lone Star to receive and store liquid and solid hazardous waste in tanks and containers, mix hazardous waste to meet fuel specifications and burn hazardous waste-derived fuel in their rotary cement kiln. The regulated units consist of two hazardous waste container storage areas, a tank farm, container processing equipment, truck unloading facilities and fuel blending equipment. These permits also require corrective action in the event there is a hazardous waste release to the environment.

On June 29, 2006, the department approved Lone Star’s Class 2 Permit Modification request, allowing Lone Star to add addition waste codes and expand the existing drum storage area. On Nov. 14, 2007, the department and EPA issued Class 3 Permit Modifications to Lone Star, allowing Lone Star to convert two burn tanks into storage/blending tanks and build and operate two new burn tanks.

Lone Star submitted a permit application on July 16, 2008, for renewal of its existing hazardous waste permits. Lone Star’s existing Part I Permit expired Feb. 16, 2009 and Part II Permit expired March 18, 2009. State regulations allow the existing hazardous waste permits to continue in effect until the department and EPA issue or deny new hazardous waste permits. The department determined the permit application was complete on July 17, 2009. The department is conducting a technical review of the permit application.