CLEWISTON, Fla. — June 16, 2008 — Southern Gardens Citrus and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) are proud to announce a cooperative effort at the Clewiston citrus processing facility that resulted in a 75% reduction in sulfur (SO2) emissions and a historic permit revision. The project also enabled Southern Gardens to reduce costly diesel fuel use by 25% and increase the efficiency of its citrus pulp feed mill operation, saving the company more than $4 million a year.

“This cooperative partnership with DEP has been unique in my view,” said Tris Chapman, vice president and general manager, Southern Gardens Citrus Processing. “I've been in this business for more than 30 years and the active participation of the Air Resource Management of DEP, not only in working with us but in actively advising us along the way, was instrumental in the success of this project.”

According to Chapman, the project began two years ago when Southern Gardens sought renewal of the plant's Title V industrial air emissions permit. The new permit contained more stringent environmental parameters than had the previous permit, particularly with regard to sulfur emissions when using higher sulfur diesel fuels which run the plant's feed mill.

The feed mill processes the residual orange peel, seeds and other biomass, producing valuable by products such as molasses and d'limonene. The remaining citrus waste is dried and pressed into pellets sold as cattle feed. The feed mill dryer is fired by fuel oil (containing sulfur) with a Waste Heat Evaporator. Operationally, these release steam and gases (SO2 from sulfur) through a stack (chimney) into the air, requiring a permit limiting the amount of gas emitted.

With the increasing cost of fossil fuel, Southern Gardens wanted to move to a more efficient and less costly fuel with higher sulfur content. Both the efficiency improvement and the cost savings were dramatic. The fuel efficiency helped to reduce fuel usage and was less expensive by more than $1 per gallon. In order to meet new permit requirements using this higher sulfur fuel, DEP required the addition of an expensive on-site Continuous Emissions Monitoring System (CEMS). The CEMS equipment was costly to rent, required extensive maintenance and outside expertise in order to provide continuous emissions monitoring data to ensure compliance with all applicable air quality standards.

In a collaborative effort between the agency and Southern Gardens, DEP Director of Air Resource Management Joe Kahn and his staff agreed to work with Chapman's team at Southern Gardens on a solution aimed at satisfying both environmental and business objectives. “We in DEP's air division were pleased by the multiple benefits that came from working with Southern Gardens on this project,” said Joe Kahn. “Through this innovation, the company has lowered its costs while we all benefit from the reduction in sulfur emissions.” The group developed a series of pilot projects, modifying several different areas within the feed mill, while continuously monitoring air emissions with the required CEMS equipment.

First, data showed that lime introduced early in the feed mill process helps reduce SO2. Next, improvements to the citrus press process resulted in a 25% reduction in overall fuel use, upgraded fans in the feed mill dryers also reduced particulate matter in the emissions, and most importantly, the introduction of a caustic soda injection system in the Waste Heat Evaporators led to a significant and sustainable 75% reduction in SO2 emissions. With the addition of the new caustic injection system; the facility expects to emit approximately 70% to 90% of SO2 gasses lower then permitted.

“These reductions illustrate the company's commitment to running a sustainable agricultural operation promoting pollution prevention. In reducing annual air (SO2) emissions, this benefits the environmental health of the surrounding communities and air quality in the state of Florida,” said Juan Maldonado, environmental specialist, Southern Gardens.

“Throughout the pilot study, we used preventative measures, engineering controls and parametric testing procedures to monitor our compliance with DEP's permit requirements,” Chapman said. “Not only were we completely in compliance, we had reduced our emissions by 75%. This assured DEP that the CEMS unit was an unnecessary step, to the extent that they were willing to re-write our permit removing its requirement.”

Eliminating the need for the CEMS unit results in a streamlined monitoring process. “From a regulatory compliance perspective, this project with Southern Gardens represents hitting the trifecta,” commented A.J. Satyal, the DEP South District Air Program Administrator. “We were able to achieve improved emissions, lower costs, and a simpler, more efficient compliance monitoring system.”

“Southern Gardens strives to be an industry leader in many areas and we are extremely proud to work with DEP to further protect our natural environment. In addition, this project enables us to reduce our use of expensive fossil fuels while at the same time improving the efficiency of our citrus processing operation,” said Ricke Kress, president, Southern Gardens Citrus.

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