Composting and compost utilization with organic residuals from oilsands camps and operations

Residuals from remote oil and gas camps and operations, such as food scraps, paper/wood and bio solids, are currently disposed of via land filling or sewage lagoons at considerable cost in handling, hauling and tipping fees. Composting systems with the capability to both minimize ‘waste’ and recover resources are widely and successfully used by municipalities. A number of COSIA member companies have cited the emerging issue of scarcity of suitable topsoil and organic material to support land reclamation. Using composting systems could decrease waste disposal costs while also enriching soils used for reclamation. The objectives of this project were to: (1) characterize organic residual (‘waste’) streams at COSIA member facilities; (2) develop criteria for system design and performance; (3) evaluate commercially available technologies; (4) complete conceptual design(s); (5) generate cost and NPV estimates; (6) develop a model for compost utilization and compile supporting literature.

The project was completed in three phases: (1) Literature Review; (2) Characterization of Residuals and Facility Design; and (3) Economic Assessment. After reviewing literature and comparing different composting methods, the best method was found to be an in-vessel composting technique that takes 21 days to compost and 90 days to cure. Economically, switching to this composting method was found to be very beneficial for camps with more than 600-700 people, with savings increasing with number of people, and that it was likely to be beneficial even for smaller camps.