Waste Connections awards contract to Altra | Sanexen to combat PFAS

Waste Connections, Woodbridge, Ontario, has awarded a contract to Altra | Sanexen, a Brossard, Quebec-based environmental and water solutions provider, to provide the first continuous full-scale per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) remediation solution to the landfill and industrial waste management industry.

According to a news release from Altra, this contract is the first of its kind and aims at achieving a guaranteed level of PFAS removal in contaminated leachates.

Research has shown PFAS have become pervasive in the environment and poses a health risk when accumulated in the body, creating a need to safely destroy or sequester these contaminants while leaving limited harmful byproducts.

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Altra says its PFAS solution offers landfill operators a comprehensive and cost-effective approach to reducing PFAS contamination in leachate and wastewater. This solution combines the power of its proprietary foam fractionation technology with high-performing modular units operating in continuous mode to treat large volumes of water contaminants.

"Altra’s PFAS solution is the culmination of years of development and extensive pilots in the most complex conditions and it is the leading way to remove a significant amount of PFAS from leachate with the confidence that can only be realized through years of experience in the field," says Martin Bureau, vice president, of innovation for Altra | Sanexen, and PFAS lead. "We are very excited to bring our proven technology to assist in the treatment of landfill leachate."

As part of this project, Altra will provide and operate its modular units at Waste Connections' landfills in Rosemount and Rich Valley, Minnesota, for the next 10 years.

The partnership aligns with Waste Connections' goals for PFAS removal in the leachate at its landfills. According to its 2022 sustainability report, the company generates more than 650 million gallons of leachate annually, over two-thirds of which has historically been transported off-site for treatment. The company’s 15-year aspirational target is to mitigate the environmental impact of transporting and disposing of leachate by enhancing the company's ability to treat leachate using its own facilities to over 50 percent of leachate generated.

In the last two years, the company has increased the amount of leachate it processes on-site by 10 percent and had two PFAS treatment facilities begin operations in 2022. In the future, it plans to process at least 50 percent of leachate on-site by 2033. Right now the company processes 37.1 percent of the leachate it generates, according to the report.

"Waste Connections is excited to partner with Altra | Sanexen in reducing PFAS concentration in the leachate generated at our landfills," says Kurt Shaner, vice president of engineering and sustainability at Waste Connections. "PFAS are commonly used in many different household and commercial products, which then turn into waste that is deposited in our landfills. As a receiver of these PFAS-containing wastes, we work to properly sequester as much of the PFAS present in those wastes as possible. For any landfill byproducts containing PFAS, we are unable to sequester, we are committed to treating, so as to reduce their presence."

Waste Today has reached out to Altra and Waste Connections for further comment.