Matthews Environmental Solutions solves a Clinical waste problem for the isle of Jersey

The UK state of Jersey faced a difficult medical waste challenge and turned to Matthews Environmental Solutions (MES) for help. Situated on an island in the English Channel between Britain and France, the Jersey government operated a large, high-volume incineration plant for general waste, but because of environmental regulations, that system couldn`t be used for clinical or pathological waste.

Working with the Jersey government, the Matthews Environmental team designed and built an innovative, stepped hearth incinerator that destroys clinical waste in a way compliant with the stringent UK and EU waste environmental guidelines. The incinerator reduces one ton of hazardous or infectious clinical waste to about 30kg of sterile, dry ash for disposal.

The stepped hearth incinerator takes its name from its unique design, where the floor of the main combustion chamber is divided into a series of steps in a cascade. Waste is loaded in at the top step, and as it burns, a series of automated rams slowly pushes it off onto the next lower step. Repeated over a series of three steps, this ensures that even this wet, dense waste is fully agitated, exposed to the combustion process and destroyed.

The Matthews design also saves labour at the site and protects system operators. Waste arrives in bins which are loaded into an automated bin lift. The bin lift weighs, raises, and tips them into the ram loader, where automated rams load them into the combustion chamber and down the steps inside. Finally, an automatic conveyor system collects the remaining ash, cooling it before transferring it to an ash bin. The site operators are protected from handling the waste and exposure to the system`s high temperatures. An advanced digital control system makes it easy for operators to learn and use.

The MES team designed and built the complete system, including shipping it to the island, and installing and commissioning it. The system is in full operation now, solving an environmental challenge for the local government and protecting the health and safety of the island`s citizens.