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Erie Pier Process Re-use Facility Cost Analysis

• Rodger Brannan and James Skurla,
• UMD Labovitz School of Business and Economics
  (LSBE)
• Harbor Technical Advisory Committee (HTAC)
• December 5, 2007

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Source http//www.glc.org/announce/06/pdf/Ojard.p
df
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Erie Pier CDF
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Erie Pier Management Plan From the Erie Pier
Management Plan June 2007, Produced by the
Metropolitan Interstate Council

• Including preliminary discussion of Re-Use
  Facility Issues
• Preparation of Material for Reuse
• Certification of Material for Resale

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Erie Pier Management Plan From the Erie Pier
Management Plan June 2007, Produced by the
Metropolitan Interstate Council
The MIC management plan included this figure to
describe processing operations as projected for
the Erie Pier PRF by the USACE and others. Note
this diagram may change to include a one-car
railroad spur, and/or other access and
transportation attributes.
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Labovitz School Research Issue

• Constraints on options for placing dredged
  materials at the Erie Pier have urged action on a
  plan for re-cycling material.
• The LSBE project, funded by the Great Lakes
  Maritime Research Institute, will determine cost
  accounting and capital budgeting for a proposed
  Process Re-use Facility (PRF), and evaluate
  market opportunities.

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LSBE Project Objectives

• To identify
• the operating, fixed, and capital costs of
  extending the life of the existing Erie Pier CDF
• including operations for physical separation of
  the facilitys existing material
• the cost to get the dredged material off-site
• and variable operating costs
• the costs necessary to situate the recycle center
  as a financially break-even enterprise.

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LSBE Project Objectives

• To support the proposition that Erie Pier can be
  operated as a recycle site
• To estimate opportunities associated with
  upgrading the CDF to a PRF

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LSBE Project Objectives

• Market Analysis (and business planning)
• Commercial applications
• Definition of types of materials
• Consumer demand

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Methodology

• The methodology will be based on cost
  minimization rather than profit maximization.
• The goal of the study will be to estimate the
  costs, revenues, and fees necessary to get the
  dredged materials off the Erie Pier CDF.
• The findings from this project may be of use as a
  model for other ports for the Great Lakes.

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Methodology

• Much of this research involves standard
  methodology. However many aspects of the data
  collection and analysis will be specific to the
  Duluth-Superior Great Lakes port used to situate
  the cost comparisons.

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Methodology

• The project will involve a literature search to
  compare beneficial use projects on the Great
  Lakes and to investigate related issues in the
  disposition of dredged materials for other ports,
  as well as accounting landfill issues.
• Data collection will be directed by the Principal
  Investigator. Phone interviews and secondary data
  sources will be used.

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Methodology

• Researchers will coordinate with HTAC, MARAD and
  USACE on this project.
• Supply chain information will also be identified.
  The total landed cost will be estimated from all
  production, stowage, inventory and transportation
  costs.
• External costs related to environmental issues
  will not be estimated.

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Site Visit 11/29/2007 Entry to the CDF at 40th
Ave. W. and I-35
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Site Visit 11/29/2007 Dredged material, SW
corner looking NW.
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Site Visitation Erie Pier Confined Disposal
Facility?
Site Visit 11/29/2007 View of BNSF, from top of
washed dredged material (est. 100,000 cu. yds.),
at NW perimeter of CDF looking NW.
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Site Visitation Erie Pier Confined Disposal
Facility?
Site Visit 11/29/2007 View of BNSF, from top of
washed dredged material (est. 100,000 cu. yds.),
at NW perimeter of CDF looking NW.
Site Visit 11/29/2007 Looking NE at Hallett Dock
from sluice.
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Site Visit 11/29/2007 Dike at NE perimeter of
sluice
BBER thanks Jim Sharrow, Duluth Seaway Port
Authority facilities manager, for the opportunity
to tour this site.
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Key Findings from Literature Search Erie Pier
Confined Disposal Facility?

• Planning should continue because time will run
  out.
• Green Bay, selling a mix/compost solution, GB
  re-classified bio-hazard material.
• Using dredge material to create new islands is
  not happening anymore
• Beach nourishment is still good option
• NRRI study mining ground cover

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Work plan
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For more information, please contact

• Jim Skurla, Acting Director, UMD LSBE
• Bureau of Business and Economic Research
• Labovitz School of Business and Economics
• University of Minnesota Duluth
• 412 Library Drive
• Duluth, MN  55812-2496
• phone [phone]
• fax  [phone]
• jskurla_at_d.umn.edu