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S PEe ~c:.."'Dih8:..L i'j{4~ A L R E P 0 R T EPA Cremation Stack Tests Produce Promising Results Environmental Protection Agency with crematory stack testing to guide upcoming federal emissions regulations. The EPA performed the tests at The Woodlawn Cemetery in Bronx, New York, and CANA revealed preliminary results at its annual convention in Baltimore in August. Background ing older crematories cannot reach the higher temperatures. The The EPA has been developing environmental regulations for var- tests included emission samples both before and after the gases ious industries, including crematories, since the early 1990s. Its entered the water scrubbers. According to Paul Rahill, president charge from Congress is to develop regulations for the year 2000. of Industrial Equipment and Engineering and a leader of CANA's Specifically, it has been charged with selecting the best existing emissions testing workgroup, the industry has conducted various pollution reduction technology within each industry and testing it cremation emissions tests over the years and had some idea as to to set the emission standards for the rest of the industry. The what the results would be; however, this was the first time testing Woodlawn Cemetery uses cremation equipment that is more than had been done using scrubbers. 20 years old; however, it is one of the only sites in North America "[The EPA] presumed that because this equipment had water with operating pollution control equipment-water scrubbers scrubbers on it, cleaning the exhaust, that the emissions from the installed on its stacks to clean the gases before they exit to the cremation equipment would be better as a result of going through atmosphere. the scrubber," he said. "However, the reality of that presumption According to incoming CANA President John Cole, the testing was not known because we did not have test data that would and the subsequent regulations may have far-reaching implica- either prove or disprove that theory. So we entered into this with, tions. "CANA wanted to take a proactive role on behalf of its some excitement, not knowing what the outcome was going to be membership to assist the EPA in the development of realistic, exactly." effective legislation," Cole said in an address at the August con- Woodlawn owns four All crematories, Model 1701, manufac- vention. "The accurate, relevant test data derived from this effort tured in the early 1970s. They are cold hearth furnaces with over- will be used to develop federal regulations and also to encourage head burners and have extended breaching. The equipment's consistent state and provincial regulations. This initiative will retention time-the amount of time it holds gases to ensure max- benefit every company involved in the cremation industry and imum burning-is one second, which is representative of the most importantly will protect the interests of consumers as wel1." industry. The Woodlawn models typically do not reach the higher CANA shared the cost of the testing with the EPA to ensure the temperatures needed for the testing, so air valves and air controls ability to conduct a full range of tests and generate comprehen- were added to allow them to do so. sive, accurate data. The total cost of the testing was $277,000, of The crematory used minimum containers or particle boards for which the EPA paid $90,000. As of August 27, CANA had raised the testing. According to Rahill, CANA had been prepared to use $151,000 in contributions from more than 240 members, suppli- a variety of containers, including finished solid and hardwood ers and industry associations, including the ICFA. It plans to raise caskets, but the EPA decided that would be unnecessary after the remainder of the funds through additional contributions and reviewing previous test results from both the cremation industry sales' of the test results. and the furniture industry. Instead, the agency asked that the testers use the containers most commonly selected by consumers. Bodies for the cremations were provided through Service Corporation International funeral home~. Approximately two hours elapsed between tests as laboratory technicians stripped and cleaned all equipment. Following this cool-down period, the crematories were heated up to the neces- fA.; C\. sary levels before testing resumed.' \ t. he Cremation Association of North America in June assisted the U.S. Methodology The stack tests consisted of 18 runs at three different tempera- tures. Originally, the EPA had planned only 12 runs at 1600 degrees and 1800 degrees Fahrenheit. However, CANA paid extra to allow for an additional six runs at 1400 F because some exist- L4 International Cemetery&Funeral Management