Falconbridge cuts sulphur dioxide output at Sudbury

Falconbridge, the free world’s second largest nickel producer, says it is able to meet the Ontario government’s 1994 “Countdown Acid Rain” goal three years ahead of schedule. The government’s 1994 limit for sulphur dioxide emissions at the company’s Sudbury, Ont., smelter is 100 kilotonnes per year, but only 70 kilotonnes were released in 1990, the company reports.

That’s less than half of the government’s current allowable limit of 154 kilotonnes. Part of the reduction was achieved by lower metal output from the smelter which produced 34 kilotonnes of nickel last year.

The company’s main challenge has been to meet the Ontario government’s target while operating at full production.

“Even operating at 40 kilotonnes of nickel per year, we are now confident that we can keep sulphur dioxide emissions under 100 kilotonnes per year,” said Mike Amsden, vice-president of environmental services for Falconbridge.

“Some time ago, we had set a voluntary target of 75 kilotonnes of sulphur dioxide per year at full smelter capacity, to be achieved by 1998,” he said. “We want to reach that before 1998.”

A new smelter and acid plant installed in 1978, along with process improvements through the 1980s, contributed to reducing the tonnes of sulphur dioxide emitted per tonne of nickel produced to 1.9 in 1990, down from 6.5 in 1975. Since the early 1970s, Falconbridge has spent some $300 million to reduce sulphur dioxide emissions.

During the next three years, the company will continue to upgrade its mill and smelter as well as conduct research and development into ways of reducing sulphur dioxide emissions as quickly as possible.