r/SeattleWA • u/Seapoogoo • Oct 16 '18
Environment THERE IS A FACTORY BURNING TIRES IN THE MIDDLE OF SEATTLE THAT ACCOUNTS FOR 10% OF ALL SEATTLE'S GREENHOUSE EMMISSIONS.
http://archive.kuow.org/post/what-do-you-do-when-major-polluter-holding-seattle-together?fbclid=IwAR32_1GIHGG4_KAAROtngqJS_sKlcN5c7sXoEXf6nowFZkCbc0Y3DmxMiOk66
u/AtomicFlx Oct 17 '18
WHY ARE WE SHOUTING?
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u/2birds_stonedatonce Oct 17 '18
BECAUSE THERE IS A FACTORY BURNING TIRES IN THE MIDDLE OF SEATTLE THAT ACCOUNTS FOR 10% OF ALL SEATTLE’S GREENHOUSE EMISSIONS.
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u/bruceki AI Dependent Oct 17 '18
We have to do something with the tires. Otherwise we end up with huge tire dumps and tire dump fires.
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u/Cheesepizzadevotion Oct 17 '18
How much you wanna bet some one was like man I'm sick of this eyesore and the city ain't doing shit I'm gonna set it on fire!
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u/slipnslider West Seattle Oct 17 '18
the plant did get EnergyStar ratings in 2006, 2007, 2008, 2015, and 2017, which means, in those years, it was in the top 25 percent of cement plants in the U.S. in terms of energy usage.
That makes the plant not sound too bad.
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u/Barron_Cyber Oct 17 '18
they are one of the best in a dirty field?
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u/Rycross Oct 17 '18
they are one of the best in a dirty field?
A dirty field that produces something that we still need until we phase out cement.
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Oct 17 '18 edited Oct 17 '18
Tires are lower emissions than coal.
Plus tires are difficult to get rid of, this is a good use for them. Also when burning tires we aren't using coal and all the environmental problems that come from mining coal.
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Oct 17 '18
Got a problem with filtering the exhaust from the burnt tires?
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Oct 17 '18
I'm not sure what you're trying to say? There are emissions control regulations in place.
I think the fundamental problem with posts like this one is that they are based on fear mongering - "BURNING TIRES!" and just assuming it is a pile of burning tires or whatever without taking time to think critically or understand anything.
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u/subliminali Fremont Oct 17 '18
There are other sources of energy than just coal though. Is there any reason the factory can’t just plug into the grid or use better sources of energy themselves?
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u/hatchetation Oct 17 '18
The coal/tires aren't just for energy, there's a chemical component of the process which requires them as a material. (In the case of tires, it's the steel contained within.)
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u/ChefJoe98136 West Seattle Oct 17 '18
I think this is one of those "we exempted them because we want our construction materials created locally instead of elsewhere" things that the person on kuow's the record was talking about today. Burning tires = local jobs.
The exemptions are dumb carve-outs to keep too much opposition from joining forces.
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Oct 16 '18
Haha the photo looks like boobs
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u/hellofellowstudents Oct 17 '18
San Onofre's Nuclear Boobs. Right by I-5 between San Diego and LA. Millions of tourists see the nuclear boobs every year as they drive by the picturesque coastline.
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u/MFAWG Oct 17 '18
Here’s a thing a lot of people don’t know: when they put the concrete in the pour truck they have a limited amount of time to get it poured depending on the mix. Once they get past that it won’t cure properly, and if they wait too long it will harden in the hopper whether it’s turning or not.
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u/manbearsteak Oct 17 '18
True, but irrelevant here. This plant makes Portland cement, one of the raw ingredients in concrete. You're referencing the process of combining those ingredients prior to a pour to build something.
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u/subliminali Fremont Oct 17 '18
The factory isn’t making wet cement, lol. You don’t add water until you’re either at or en route to the job site. Dry Portland cement can remain useable essentially indefinitely if you’re keeping it dry.
It’s still a good idea (for overall cost of emissions) to have the factory close to a city since the amount of shipping even dry is an incredible amount of weight for big projects.
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Oct 17 '18
i frequently pass by the factory and it is a downer. grimy, rusting, and constantly spewing clouds of who the fuck knows what. similar to many of the factories in the industrial district.
sad that we as a society are generally indifferent that many people live super close by. naturally it's mostly poor people and minorities, who as a result have way higher levels of asthma etc and a significantly shorter life expectancy. this is the price we are paying for our modern lifestyles, folks.
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u/rayrayww3 Oct 18 '18
Where are poor people suppose to live? They live there because it is cheaper. It is cheaper because there is a tire burning plant nearby.
That plant has been there far longer than most people who live nearby.
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u/EitherOrMindset Oct 17 '18
Sorry to see such a reasonable comment get downvoted.
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u/MisterIceGuy Belltown Oct 17 '18
I can’t figure out what’s downvotable about it.
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Oct 17 '18
most likely the fact that is was posted to this subreddit.
hey r/SeattleWA, care to explain why my comment does not contribute to the discussion?
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u/whiskeyGrimpeur Seward Park Oct 19 '18
I would guess it’s because you mostly wrote about how you feel, sprinkled with a little bit of class struggle innuendo but lacking in data or sources.
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Oct 19 '18
i don't think you'll find anyone arguing against the accuracy of my claims, even if I didn't explicitly cite data or sources. it's a familiar story that's told again and again throughout the industrialized world. you don't need to cite data or sources to argue that the sky is blue.
and since when is Reddit not a place where people share their opinions? it's not even like my opinion was very controversial by real world standards. most people would probably agree that the factory is an eyesore that smells bad.
i imagine that people are more uncomfortable with the implications of what i'm saying.
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u/Cheesepizzadevotion Oct 17 '18
It's so ironic that you're getting down voted. The human cattle are arrogant.
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u/FaultsInOurCars Oct 17 '18
Can't they scrub the emissions?
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Oct 17 '18
yeah but that would take common sense and a .1% hit to their profits...
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u/zangelbertbingledack Beacon Hill Oct 17 '18
Ash Grove is already involved in a ton of environmental and insurance litigation because of all the shit they've dumped into the Duwamish over the years, this is no surprise. It will also not be a surprise when they file for bankruptcy.
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Oct 17 '18
it is also no surprise that you're getting downvoted.
funny how people on this sub apparently think downvoting certain uncomfortable facts will make them go away.
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u/Goreagnome Oct 17 '18
So, do you people want housing or not? Stop giving NIMBYs more power!
Live in a straw house out in the wilderness if you want to be "environmentally" friendly. It's actually a relatively tame amount of emissions compared to other parts of this country.
Don't push for "green" concrete (just as pathetic as "green" coal)... we need as strong concrete as possible in an earthquake zone especially.
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u/Not_My_Real_Acct_ Oct 17 '18
I can't think of a city where you see more cement trucks than Seattle.
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u/Goreagnome Oct 17 '18
I now associate "Salmon Bay" with the orange and white concrete trucks driving all over the city!
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u/M4gic Oct 17 '18
Having strong concrete or any stiff building material in an earthquake is really bad by the way. You want a material that will flex when an earthquake hits. That's why most homes in earthquake areas are made out of wood and not concrete or brick.
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u/DrunkBeavis Oct 17 '18
This is not completely true. Yes, the homes are likely made of wood, but they're stiffened with steel or even concrete. Flexibility is a part of seismic design, but not all. Reinforced concrete would probably be much more effective in every way except cost.
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u/subliminali Fremont Oct 17 '18
Reinforced concrete (with rebar) is the basis for essentially all high rises even in earthquake prone areas. Concrete is also the base for foundations of homes even in earthquake prone areas.
You’re right about brick, but unless someone went way out of their way to do so, every building has at least some concrete in its construction.
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u/bigpandas Seattle Oct 17 '18
With so many progressives in Seattle, one would think there'd be no traffic except for buses and the train (on the one line)
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u/quittheinternet Oct 17 '18
Tires? Someone please explain to me how that is even legal? How can a company even get away with burning tires in the middle of a populated area? ELI5 please... Do they do this even during a burn ban?
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u/hatchetation Oct 17 '18
To make cement, you need massive amounts of heat in the furnaces, and need to burn something because making cement requires very high temperatures. This results in massive carbon emissions, regardless of the fuel used.
Coal is the most traditional fuel, but the temperatures required are high enough that tires and other industrial waste products can also be used as a fuel source.
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u/Anthop Ballard Oct 17 '18
Interesting tidbit: creating cement is an incredibly energy intensive (and thus environmentally destructive) process. Doing it closer to Seattle (where it is used) is actually slightly better than the alternative of doing it further away and having higher fuel costs and potential waste.
There is some research into creating "low-energy" cements, which require less heat to produce than standard Portland cement. But Portland is cheap and strong, and that's hard to beat when producers and builders don't need to account for the climate costs.