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Pasco County gets DEP OK for pilot to use landfill bottom ash as concrete additive
Summary
County officials said the Florida Department of Environmental Protection approved a pilot with CMEX in Brooksville to test bottom ash as a concrete additive; officials said if viable the program could reduce landfill expansion costs.
Pasco County announced that the Florida Department of Environmental Protection has approved a pilot to test using bottom ash from the county waste facility as a concrete additive with CMEX in Brooksville.
"We received approval from the Department of Environmental Protection to embark on a trial for the use of our bottom ash as a concrete additive with with CMEX up in Brooksville," said Mister Cabello (speaking as county staff during the meeting). Cabello said the pilot is intended to evaluate whether the ash can be reused in concrete or other construction applications as a way to avoid or reduce landfill expansion and related costs.
Cabello told commissioners the pilot could produce "cost avoidance for us, as well as, reduce the costs of expansion and not having to expand the landfill." He said the solid waste team will pursue agreements and transport plans if the pilot proves viable. A commissioner noted multiple cement plants operate closer to Pasco County and encouraged staff to explore partnerships beyond the Brooksville plant; Cabello said the Brooksville location is the pilot site for technical reasons and that future agreements would be brought back to the board if the pilot succeeds.
County staff also noted a planning figure for the cost of constructing a new landfill cell: "The cost the cost of constructing a new landfill cell is is well over $20,000,000," a staff member said during the discussion, framing the potential savings if the reuse program works.
Why it matters: finding a productive reuse for bottom ash could reduce long-term solid-waste disposal costs and delay or reduce the need to construct expensive new landfill capacity. Staff emphasized the pilot is an initial test; any broader program would require technical validation, transport and processing agreements and further board approvals.
Next steps: the county will proceed with the pilot at CMEX in Brooksville and, if results are positive, return to the board with implementation agreements and intergovernmental or commercial contracts for scaling the effort.
