Abstract
In response to the Minamata Convention on Mercury, effective 16 August 2017, the Taiwan government in recent years started to implement the sustainable material management of mercury-containing waste and articles. This was completed by a cross-ministerial collaboration for preventing the adverse effects of mercury on human health and the environment, based on the multimedia approach. The legislative or regulatory frameworks on the control and prevention of mercury emissions and releases have been established in environmental distributions, including air, water, soil, waste, food, and article (or commodity). Therefore, the central authorities included the Environmental Protection Administration (EPA), Council of Agriculture (COA), Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW), Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA), and Ministry of Labor (MOL). Furthermore, the implementation plans covered the reduction in mercury-containing products by restricted use and bans on its use, remediation of soil and groundwater for mercury-pollution sites, control of stationary source emissions, environmental monitoring, and compulsory recovery of mercury from electronic waste such as waste lightings. A successful case study on the recovery of mercury from electronic waste using a thermal treatment, and its capture control by activated carbon, was also addressed in this work. Due to the effectiveness of source control in Taiwan, the annual reported amount of mercury emissions from the stationary air pollution sources indicated a decreasing trend from 1.989 metric tons in 2016 to 1.760 metric tons in 2019. More significantly, the ministerial collaboration in implementing the Convention in Taiwan also echoed the United Nations (UN) Agenda 2030 for sustainable development goals (SDGs).
Highlights
Accepted: 22 January 2022Mercury (Hg) naturally exists in various forms, including elemental mercury (Hg0, metallic mercury, and mercury vapor); inorganic mercury (Hg+ and Hg2+, mercuric chloride, mercuric sulfide, and mercuric oxide); and organic mercury, such as methylmercury (CH3 Hg and MeHg) [1]
The mercury emissions mostly came from fly ashes, which were produced from the incineration of the mercury-containing articles mixed with municipal waste [31]
Jointly promulgated regulatory measures under the authorizations of various dia, the central governing authorities in Environmental Protection Administration (EPA), Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW), Council of Agriculture (COA), Ministry of Labor (MOL), acts/laws passed by the congress [28], which will be summarized and addressed in the and Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA)) sub-sections jointly promulgated the 1–3
Summary
Mercury (Hg) naturally exists in various forms, including elemental mercury (Hg0 , metallic mercury, and mercury vapor); inorganic mercury (Hg+ and Hg2+ , mercuric chloride, mercuric sulfide, and mercuric oxide); and organic mercury, such as methylmercury (CH3 Hg and MeHg) [1] It could be released into the environment from natural sources such as volcanic activity and weathering of rocks, human activities may be the main causes, especially in coal-fired power plants, industrial and mining processes (e.g., metal refineries), municipal solid waste incinerators, and other electronic waste recycling factories [2]. The ministerial collaboration in implementing the Convention in Taiwan echoed the United Nations (UN) Agenda 2030 for sustainable development goals (SDGs) These relevant SDGs include Goal 1 (No poverty), Goal 2 (Zero hunger), Goal 3 (Good health and well-being), Goal 7 (Affordable and clean energy), Goal 9 (Decent work and economic growth), Goal 12. Emission inventory of mercury in Taiwan; Regulatory measures relevant to the use and release of mercury; Case study in the recovery of mercury from electronic waste
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