FAQs
On this page, we have
provided answers to 20 of the most frequently asked questions about
the Ross companies. If you have additional questions, please contact
the Ross Environmental Community Relations Department at 440.366.2076.
Or click this link to e-mail us: Community
Relations E-mail
- Who are
the Ross companies?
- What
types of waste do you handle? Are they dangerous?
- What
materials are not accepted at Ross Incineration?
- Is incineration
really a good way to dispose of waste?
- How does
incineration work?
- What
do you do with the ash?
- What
comes out of your stack?
- Do you
monitor air emissions?
- Do your
operations have an impact on groundwater?
- What
if there was a spill or an accident? What would you do?
- What
does Ross Transportation do to prevent accidents?
- What
government agencies monitor your operations?
- How
do you know what wastes you are receiving?
- How
do you keep track of the waste at the plant?
- What
if the computerized system fails?
- Why
is Ross Incineration located in Eaton Township?
- Who
are your customers?
- I heard
you made changes at your facility. Did you expand?
- Have
the Ross companies increased security since the 9-11-2001 terrorist
attacks?
- Can
community members tour your facilities?
Who
are the Ross companies?
Ross Consolidated Corp. is the parent company
for three operating companies: Ross Environmental Services, Inc., Ross
Incineration Services, Inc. and Ross Transportation Services, Inc. The
companies have been located in Lorain County, Ohio for more than 50
years. Combined they have about 200 associates. Ross Incineration and
Ross Transportation operate at a facility located in Eaton Township
while Ross Environmental is based at its Business Center in Elyria,
Ohio.
Ross Incineration
specializes in the destruction, by incineration, of industrial waste
materials. Ross Transportation provides transportation services to industry.
Ross Environmental provides sales, marketing, community
relations, human resources, sales support, purchasing, information services
and regulatory assistance to the other Ross companies, to the community
and to customers.
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What
types of waste do you handle? Are they dangerous?
Ross Incineration incinerates many different types
of industrial wastes. The majority are paints, petroleum products and
used or off-spec household chemicals like cleaners, hair mousse, automotive
chemicals and even suntan lotion. Only wastes deemed appropriate for
incineration by the Environmental Protection Agency are treated by Ross
Incineration.
Ross Incineration
recognizes that some of the materials received for storage and incineration
can be hazardous to human health and the environment. Employees are
thoroughly trained in the safe handling of waste. Procedures are established
to insure the safe handling of materials from their receipt through
incineration. The incinerator is designed with the latest and best safety
features. The company is continuously upgrading the system to incorporate
the best technology currently available.
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What
materials are not accepted at Ross Incineration?
The facility operating permits issued by the United
States and Ohio Environmental Protection Agencies (U.S. EPA and Ohio
EPA) specifically list those materials that can be accepted for incineration.
Ross Incineration does not accept nuclear waste, wastes with high concentrations
of PCBs, or dioxins. Only materials which can be effectively treated
by incineration are accepted.
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Is
incineration really a good way to dispose of wastes?
Incineration is one of the best methods for waste
disposal. In fact, in regulations established by the U.S. EPA and Ohio
EPA, treatment by incineration is required for many different types
of waste that cannot be recycled or reused.
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How
does incineration work?
Waste materials
and air are fed into the incinerator where they are burned at a very
high temperature. The typical operating temperature of the incinerator
is around 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit. The intense heat causes the organic
compounds in the waste to chemically break down into simple compounds,
in effect, destroying the hazardous characteristics of the wastes. When
waste materials are incinerated, approximately 90% to 95% of the waste
volume is destroyed. This means that only 5% to 10% of the waste (ash)
goes to a landfill. In light of the crisis in landfill space we are
currently facing, this is a substantial benefit.
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What
do you do with the ash?
Ash from the incinerator is classified as a hazardous
waste by the EPA because it contains heavy metals like cadmium and lead.
The ash is chemically solidified to bind the metals into a concrete-like
substance and is then disposed of at a hazardous waste landfill.
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What
comes out of your stack?
In some ways,
the incinerator is like your home fireplace. When you burn something,
the fire creates ash and smoke. The incinerator does the same thing,
producing ash and combustion gases. These combustion gases are treated
in a state-of-the-art air pollution control system where they are neutralized,
cooled and scrubbed to remove particulate and acid gases. Emissions
from the stack must meet very stringent EPA standards established for
companies that treat waste by incineration. These standards, called
the Maximum Achievable Control Technology standards, are the most stringent
emission standards in the country. During 2002, Ross Incineration completely
replaced its air pollution control system to ensure that the company
is using the latest technology and remains in compliance with these
standards.
As a result
of this extensive air pollution control system, what you see coming
out of the stack is primarily steam. It contains water vapor, carbon
dioxide, nitrogen and small amounts of particulate.
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Do
you monitor air emissions?
Ross Incineration uses a continuous emission monitoring
system to track and record air emissions from the stack and Ohio EPA
has immediate access to this information. Ross Incineration performs
audits of its air emission monitoring equipment to insure that the instruments
are working properly. In addition, a computer control system monitors
the incineration system to be certain that it is properly operating.
This system provides for the automatic shutdown of the incinerator in
the event any of the key operating conditions are out of specification.
The company also performs air emission performance tests on a regularly
scheduled basis to verify compliance with EPA standards. Ross Incineration
has an outstanding operating record and a state-of-the-art system. The
company cares about the environment and is continuously upgrading the
system so that it can be made even more efficient and effective in preventing
pollution.
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Do
your operations have an impact on groundwater?
Ross Incineration does not
pollute the water. Great care is taken to make sure that no hazardous
chemicals can reach the groundwater. First, wastes are stored in closed
tanks and containers in specially designed storage areas. There are
containment and collection devices in the storage, handling and incineration
areas. These are inspected daily and employees are trained to prevent
problems. Also, the groundwater is sampled and tested to verify that
the facility is not polluting the groundwater in the area. RIS has a
system of 67 groundwater monitoring wells, 20 of which are sampled twice
a year. These wells were selected for sampling as part of an EPA-approved
monitoring program. To date, there has been no indication of
groundwater contamination at the facility. In addition, RIS is a zero
discharge facility, meaning that there are no discharges of process
water or stormwater from the facility. The company has a water management
system that collects rainwater on-site and utilizes it.
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What if there was a spill
or an accident? What would you do?
Although our employees are trained in the safe
handling of waste and the facility has been designed with all of the
latest safety features, Ross Incineration must be prepared to respond
to an accident. Ross Incineration employees receive extensive training
in emergency response procedures and the company maintains emergency
response equipment at the facility at all times. Mock drills are conducted
to practice emergency response procedures. In addition, members of the
Eaton Township Fire Department and Lorain County Emergency Management
Agency take tours of the facility in order to maintain a working knowledge
of the area. Several employees of the Ross companies are members of
the fire department staff. The Eaton Township Fire Department is also
the local response center for the Lorain County Haz Mat Team.
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What
does Ross Transportation do to prevent accidents?
If you have
seen Ross Transportation trucks on the road, you have noticed that they
are clean, well-equipped and well maintained. The appearance of this
fleet reflects the quality of the entire program at Ross Transportation
Services. Only the best, most experienced drivers are hired. They receive
extensive training in spill prevention and control, fire prevention
and emergency response procedures. Each truck is outfitted with spill
containment, fire fighting and emergency communication equipment. Mechanics
maintain the trucks in top operating condition at all times. All of
these precautions are working. As of January, 2003, Ross Transportation
drivers have travelled more than 5 million safe-driving miles.
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What
government agencies monitor your operations?
Ross Incineration
is regulated by multiple federal and state authorities with overlapping
environmental, health and safety responsibilities. These include the
United States and Ohio Environmental Protection Agencies (EPA), the
United States Department of Transportation and the Occupational Safety
and Health Administration (OSHA). These agencies have the right to enter
and inspect the facility at any time. Ohio has primary oversight of
the facility's hazardous waste activities. Typically, routine inspections
are handled by the Ohio EPA's Division of Hazardous Waste Management,
which has assigned one full-time inspector to the site. The Ohio EPA
has an office on the company's premises and visits the facility two
to three days per week. In addition, Ross Incineration has put electronic
systems in place to enable the inspectors to monitor facility operating
parameters 24 hours a day. They can use these computerized systems from
their office at the Ross Incineration facility or from the Ohio EPA
offices in Twinsburg.
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How
do you know what wastes you are receiving?
Before any
waste can be sent to Ross Incineration, customers must complete a Waste
Product Survey (WPS) form which describes the chemical composition of
their waste. Upon arrival at Ross Incineration, the waste is visually
inspected. Then, the on-site laboratory tests the material to be certain
that it is consistent with the WPS form. Processing and handling instructions
are written for each load of wastes before they are received. This ensures
that the waste is handled safely every step of the way from transportation
through storage and incineration.
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How
do you keep track of the waste at the plant?
A computerized tracking system
is used to monitor all wastes received at the facility. As part of this
tracking system, all drums received at the plant are bar coded. This
is similar to the bar coding used at grocery stores to keep track of
their inventory. Computerized controls monitor the levels of all storage
tanks on a continual basis.
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What
if the computerized system fails?
There are several back-up
systems built into the computer that would automatically operate if
the computer system would fail. In addition, we keep track of the waste
manually as a back-up procedure.
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Why
is Ross Incineration located in Eaton Township?
The Ross companies were founded
by Robert and Ada May Ross more than 50 years ago at the same site on
Giles Road. This property had been in their family for many years. Today,
the companies are owned and operated by Maureen (Ross) Cromling and
her husband Bill. They grew up in this community and have a strong commitment
to Eaton Township and Lorain County. They have made a significant financial
investment to continually improve the facility and will continue to
invest not only in new technology but also in their employees and the
community as well.
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Who
are your customers?
Our customers are nationally
and locally known producers of consumer and industrial products. Many
are located within a 500 mile radius of the Ross Incineration facility.
Our customers produce: plastics, paints, automotive, pharmaceuticals,
adhesives & sealants, photographic, petroleum, lawn & garden
care and cosmetics. Many of them are household names. In addition, we
work with several environmental remediation companies that clean up
government and industrial sites.
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I
heard you made changes at your facility. Did you expand?
At the Ross
companies, we are committed to using the best available technology in
all of our operations. We are committed to protecting our employees,
our community and our environment. So we continuously make upgrades
to the Ross Incineration facility, to Ross Transportation vehicles and
to our business centers.
During 2002,
the company reinvested $11 million in new technology at the Ross Incineration
facility when we replaced the air pollution control system and the main
combustion chamber. This did not affect the amount of waste that Ross
Incineration is permitted to accept at its facility. Improving the incineration
system enables the company to keep pace with changes in the hazardous
waste marketplace and to continue to comply with stringent EPA standards.
During 2003,
we opened the Ross Environmental Services Business Center at the Great
Lakes Technology Park on the campus of Lorain County Community College
in Elyria, OH. This new facility will incorporate the newest technology
into our office operations so that we can continue to meet the needs
of our customers.
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Have
the Ross companies increased security since the 9-11-2001 terrorist
attacks?
Safety and security have
always been important issues for the Ross companies and, like many companies,
the 9-11-2001 tragedy caused us to re-evaluate our security measures
and to implement new measures.
Ross Transportation
drivers have received “highway watch” training from the State
Highway Patrol and now report suspicious activities on the roadways.
All trailers are padlocked and tanker loads sealed while on the road
and during layovers.
Ross Incineration
has registered with the FBI for alerts on all terrorist threats. All
deliveries to the facility must be scheduled in advance and all visitors
must show identification to gain facility access. The company has sent
out special communications to its customers regarding security. The
facility is surrounded by a six foot chain link fence topped with barbed
wire to discourage unauthorized site entry. Entry gates are electronically
monitored 24-hours a day, 365 days a year by security guards.
At the offices,
doors are locked and visitors are identified through an intercom before
being allowed entry into the building. Finally, the Ross companies provide
training, drills and guidance for employees, contractors, service providers,
suppliers and others to enhance security awareness and response capabilities.
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Can
community members tour your facilities?
Yes, members
of the community are welcome to take tours of the plant and offices.
Presentations are also given to community groups and organizations about
the Ross companies. Tours and presentations can be scheduled through
the Ross Environmental Community Relations Department. Click
here for more details.
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Click here for more information
about our Community Relations programs:
Community Relations
Corporate Contributions
& Volunteers
The Ross Foundation, Inc.
Tours & Speakers Bureau
Public Participation
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