Recycled oil could become heating fuel source for NK

Using thousands of gallons of recycled oil dropped off annually at New Kent refuse sites could save the county close to $1 million in fuel costs over a 20-year period. And with that sort of information in hand, county supervisors are exploring a proposal to install, in some county-owned buildings, furnaces and boilers that burn used oil.

Board of Supervisors members were handed the proposal during their Nov. 25 work session. County Administrator John Budesky said staff intends to explore the matter further and develop a plan of action for board consideration.

Candidate buildings include those housing public utilities along with the new vehicle maintenance facility and the old middle school.

Currently, the county pays just over $3 a gallon for Number 2 fuel oil and about $2.80 per gallon for liquid propane gas. Recycled oil wouldn’t cost the county a penny.

In delivering their report to the board, county General Services Department director Jim Tacosa and county maintenance supervisor David Bednarczyk noted that New Kent’s four refuse sites took in close to 14,000 gallons in used oil during the last fiscal year.

Central Virginia Waste Management Authority then collects the used oil, and the county earns 30 cents per gallon. About 65 percent of used oil is reused as base stock to be blended with new oil while the remainder is disposed of. Furnaces and boilers fired by used oil, however, consume 100 percent as fuel.

One gallon of used crankcase oil, they said in their report, produces a heat value of 140,000 BTU compared to 138,500 BTU for a gallon of Number 2 fuel oil and 91,502 BTU per gallon of propane.

And the furnaces are designed to burn transmission oil, hydraulic fluid, Number 2 and 5 fuel oil, and can even operate on cooking grease. Some units can burn fuels with a viscosity as high as 90.

The county would have to invest in the furnaces that cost about $8,000 each. The units can be mounted in tandem with existing heating units and do not occupy much space, Tacosa said, noting that used oil furnaces are clean burning and sanctioned by the federal Environmental Protection Agency.

“Payback is fairly quick, probably about two years, after the initial investment,” he added.

Figures provided in the report listed the county’s current revenue share at $84,000 over 20 years assuming 14,000 gallons per year at the current 30 cents per gallon the county earns. Net cost savings for only one furnace is pegged at just over $76,000. If the county operates 14 units, the 20-year savings are just over $1 million, even with the cost per unit factored in.

Supervisors, meanwhile, embraced the used oil furnace concept.

“The fuel source is free, and that’s the bottom line,” District 2 Supervisor Marty Sparks said.

In other business, supervisors are expected to schedule a public hearing on an ordinance, proposed by the county’s Parks and Recreation Department, that would enable the county sheriff’s office and other law enforcement agencies to enforce rules and regulations at department-operated facilities. Those facilities include Quinton Community Park, Wahrani Nature Trail, and the Quinton Community Center.

The nine-page proposed ordinance covers park use and traffic regulations, personal conduct by visitors, operation requirements, activities allowed and those prohibited, and protection of park property and structures. If approved, anyone violating rules and regulations contained in the ordinance could be charged with a Class 4 misdemeanor.