STELLA staff assessed whether the US Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) should provide funding for the Rio de Janeiro Sludge Treatment Feasibility Study and the Suape Industrial Port Complex in Brazil. The Rio de Janeiro Water and Sewage Company (CEDAE) is a state-run company in charge of water supply and wastewater treatment within the State of Rio de Janeiro. CEDAE must find a way to handle the sludge resulting from wastewater treatment and is interested in giving a concession to a private firm for sludge treatment. STELLA staff recommended that USTDA fund $300,000 for a Rio Sludge Management Feasibility Study, subject to CEDAE's agreement that any sludge management projects will be developed and operated as concessions. The Suape Industrial Port Complex is in a large industrial area in the south of Recife in the State of Pernambuco. According to the feasibility study conducted by the Federal University of Pernambuco, at least two dozens of industrial units of the industrial complex generate 23 tonnes of hazardous waste per day, about 7,000 tonnes per year. Suape would like an external company to manage its hazardous waste, as is currently the case for electricity, water, and other services. The company selected to manage hazardous waste could also manage solid waste generated by the city of Recife. STELLA staff recommended that USTDA fund $25,000 for a pre-feasibility study to obtain agreements from various multinational companies ready to hire this company to manage their hazardous waste.

STELLA staff managed risks assessments of five US medical waste incinerators (Massachusetts General Hospital, Thomas Jefferson in Philadelphia, University of Michigan, Stony Brook Medical Centre, and Saint Joseph Hospital in New York). To evaluate the highest concentrations of pollutants, STELLA staff estimated emissions of suspended particulate matter, SO2, CO, NOX, HCl, heavy metals, and dioxins, and applied the ISCLT, ISCST, and PTPLU air dispersion models. Using dose-response relationships, STELLA staff evaluated the risks resulting from these concentrations (to the Most Exposed Individual and to the population living next to the incinerator).

For the US Trade and Development Agency, STELLA staff conducted a desk study to evaluate a proposal by Kiber Environmental for a feasibility study of a facility that would process oil sludge waste from vessels in the Port of Limon and Moin. The facility would recycle the sludge by using two new technologies (DCR asphalt technology and Cement-Lock) to make asphalt and concrete. STELLA staff reviewed the technical and financial proposal, contacted key players in the project and conducted interviews on the technology and the current economic and environmental situation in Costa Rica. STELLA staff concluded that, prior to a feasibility study, a market assessment of the availability of sludge waste, tipping fees, and actual demand for the products generated by the facility needed to be undertaken.

STELLA staff contributed to an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) of a proposed ethylene oxide and ethylene glycol plant in Venezuela, partially financed by the World Bank's International Finance Corporation (IFC). In compliance with the World Bank's environmental guidelines for projects of this nature, the EIA reviewed relevant Venezuelan and international environmental regulations on solid and hazardous waste, direct wastewater discharges to surface waters such as the Maracaibo Lake, indirect discharges to Publicly Owned Treatment Works (POTWs), air pollution, and noise. The EIA described current environmental and socio-economic conditions near the proposed PRALCA plant site. STELLA staff identified and evaluated potential environmental impacts associated with the construction, operation, and maintenance of the plant, and proposed measures to prevent or mitigate these impacts. The EIA found that wastewater discharges to the sewer line would not meet the Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) limits due to the high TDS content of the well water used by the cooling tower. To remedy this potential problem, the EIA suggested either using an alternative source of water or treating the well water to reduce its TDS content prior to discharge to the sewer.