Article 50Operating conditions
1.Waste incineration plants shall be operated in such a way as to achieve a level of incineration such that the total organic carbon content of slag and bottom ashes is less than 3 % or their loss on ignition is less than 5 % of the dry weight of the material. If necessary, waste pre-treatment techniques shall be used.
2.Waste incineration plants shall be designed, equipped, built and operated in such a way that the gas resulting from the incineration of waste is raised, after the last injection of combustion air, in a controlled and homogeneous fashion and even under the most unfavourable conditions, to a temperature of at least 850 °C for at least two seconds.
Waste co-incineration plants shall be designed, equipped, built and operated in such a way that the gas resulting from the co-incineration of waste is raised in a controlled and homogeneous fashion and even under the most unfavourable conditions, to a temperature of at least 850 °C for at least two seconds.
If hazardous waste with a content of more than 1 % of halogenated organic substances, expressed as chlorine, is incinerated or co-incinerated, the temperature required to comply with the first and second subparagraphs shall be at least 1 100 °C.
In waste incineration plants, the temperatures set out in the first and third subparagraphs shall be measured near the inner wall of the combustion chamber. The competent authority may authorise the measurements at another representative point of the combustion chamber.
3.Each combustion chamber of a waste incineration plant shall be equipped with at least one auxiliary burner. This burner shall be switched on automatically when the temperature of the combustion gases after the last injection of combustion air falls below the temperatures set out in paragraph 2. It shall also be used during plant start-up and shut-down operations in order to ensure that those temperatures are maintained at all times during these operations and as long as unburned waste is in the combustion chamber.
The auxiliary burner shall not be fed with fuels which can cause higher emissions than those resulting from the burning of gas oil as defined in Article 2(2) of Council Directive 1999/32/EC of 26 April 1999 relating to a reduction in the sulphur content of certain liquid fuels(1), liquefied gas or natural gas.
4.Waste incineration plants and waste co-incineration plants shall operate an automatic system to prevent waste feed in the following situations:
(a)at start-up, until the temperature set out in paragraph 2 of this Article or the temperature specified in accordance with Article 51(1) has been reached;
(b)whenever the temperature set out in paragraph 2 of this Article or the temperature specified in accordance with Article 51(1) is not maintained;
(c)whenever the continuous measurements show that any emission limit value is exceeded due to disturbances or failures of the waste gas cleaning devices.
5.Any heat generated by waste incineration plants or waste co-incineration plants shall be recovered as far as practicable.
6.Infectious clinical waste shall be placed straight in the furnace, without first being mixed with other categories of waste and without direct handling.
7.Member States shall ensure that the waste incineration plant or waste co-incineration plant is operated and controlled by a natural person who is competent to manage the plant.