Storm water/wastewater issues for the steel industry

The Great Lakes Water Quality Initiative (GLWQI), the most extensive water quality regulation ever proposed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, is of vital concern to the domestic iron and steel industry. Approximately 60% of U.S. integrated iron and steel capacity is located in the Great Lakes basin. To assess the impact of the GLWQI on the U.S. iron and steel industry, the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) commissioned Chester Environmental to develop estimates of what it would cost an integrated steel plant to implement water treatment systems to meet the permit limits that would result from GLWQI criteria and procedures. The total capital cost under their study conditions was found to be approximately $175 million for the Grand Calumet Plant in Gary, IN. Projecting this figure to the entire integrated steelmaking capacity in the Great Lakes states, AISI placed the total capital cost at more than $3 billion, with annual operating costs of about $450 million.