Water Pollution Control Act
Globalization and rapid technological advancements have increased both domestic and foreign demand for production, resulting in increasingly diversified types of wastewater. To effectively manage wastewater (sewage) discharged by enterprises or those in the sewage systems, improve the environment, maintain ecological systems, and stay in line with the policy on circular economy, the Ministry of Environment (MOENV) proposed to amend the Water Pollution Control Act and its sub laws. Such amendments aim to proactively strengthen water control measures and tighten laws and impose a stricter effluent standard for specific industries to manage and protect water resources and create a more livable environment.
I. Strengthen water control measures
To better transform livestock waste into resources, develop the circular economy for the husbandry industry, meet the practical requirements, and prevent disputes resulted from execution, and considering that wastewater discharged by certain industries is suspected to pollute water bodies, the classification and definition of industries under the Water Pollution Control Act were amended on December 27th 2017 and May 1st 2019 with the addition of 7 types of enterprises: “animal excreta and bioenergy transformation facilities (or methane recycling center),” “reclaimed water operators,” “seawater desalination facilities,” “steam supply facilities,” “enterprises that collects livestock excrements or liquor and fiber digestate to cultivate algae, rotifers, water fleas, and other aqua products,” “enterprises that engage in quantity control for reduction of total phosphorous in the reservoir in a controlled area,” and “enterprises that are specified in Paragraph 1, Article 33 and enterprises that store substances that have been officially announced and designated by the central competent authority as specified in the Paragraph 1, Article 3 of the Water Pollution Control Act” as an effort to increase risk control.
The Water Pollution Control Measures and Test Reporting Management Regulations specifies measures that the stock farming industry needs to take to process livestock waste and measures that certain enterprises need to take to treat their wastewater or sewage separately. Due to large volume of wastewater and sewage discharged into public sewage systems, when there are events of inappropriate water treatments, or unapproved discharge of sewage, automatic monitoring systems and the online transmission of data to local competent authorities are required for monitoring water quality and water volume and executing precaution and control measures. Additionally, the government has been promoting measures to integrate the animal farming sector into the circular economy, streamlining the application process for fertilizers used in small pig farms, and reducing administrative costs. The regulation was amended and published on March 8th, 2019, stipulating that using liquor and fiber digestate as fertilizers shall be managed according to the scale of arming. Items requiring reporting are amended. Inspections are managed based on the legitimacy of inspection fees and nature of enterprises.
The sub-laws and regulations of the Water Pollution Act enable operators to duly operate wastewater and sewage treatment facilities to reduce the possibilities of water pollution and maintain water quality.
Strengthen water control file
II. Tighten/add effluent standards
To reduce the amount of ammonia nitrogen (NH3-N) and heavy metals flowing into environmental waters, increase the achievement rates of heavy metal reduction in rivers, protect crops and farmlands from heavy metals, strengthen risk control, and protect water resources, a new set of control standards of effluents or stricter controls on true color, heavy metals, ammonia nitrogen, and hazardous substances for certain types of entities will be enacted starting from January 1st, 2021.
On December 25th 2017, a total of 7 sets of standards for effluents were abolished, amended, and announced. The standard for enterprises engaged in optoelectronic materials and components manufacturing was incorporated into the effluent standards. To improve water quality and lower the risk of farmland pollution, control items and legal limits for ammonia nitrogen, heavy metals, carcinogens, and true color were amended.
Some of the raw materials used by the technology and petrochemical sectors are carcinogenic. The wastewater is suspected to cause health concerns. In light of this, a total of 9 substances, including acrylonitrile and N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone, were added to the standards to increase risk control for pollution.
To further reduce the total discharge volume of ammonia nitrogen in water bodies, control items were added for 5 types of businesses, including those engaged in electroplating and metallic surface treatment, and leather manufacturing, leather processing, landfilling and power generation. For public sewage systems, ammonia nitrogen and the total discharge volume of nitrogen were added. The total discharge volumes of nitrogen and phosphorus were added into the scope of control items for hospitality businesses that discharge wastewater and sewage into water volume and quality protection areas to enhance water quality inside the areas.
The discharge of high-colored water usually changes the color of waters, leaving a bad impression on the public. Stricter standards on the color of waters were added for 23 types of businesses, including businesses engaged in leather processing, and the sewage systems in industrial parks. In addition, free available residual chlorine was also included in the scope of control items to prevent businesses from using too much bleach and endanger aquatic organisms.
Treated effluent water is compliant with the standards. However, if treated water is discharged into waters with smaller base stream flow, such as irrigation systems or other waterways, irrigated crops and farmlands will be contaminated due to cumulative effects of heavy metal. Therefore, stricter standards on a total of 9 heavy metals, including cadmium, plumbum, total discharge volume of chromium, hexavalent chromium, copper, zinc, nickel, selenium, and arsenic were imposed for a total of 7 types of businesses with production process requiring heavy metals and discharge volume amounting to certain levels, the sewage systems in science and industrial parks, petrochemical industrial parks, and other industrial parks. The aforementioned businesses include those engaged in wafer foundry and semiconductor manufacturing, optoelectronic materials and components manufacturing, chemical engineering, metal basic production, electroplating and metallic surface treatment, and PCB manufacturing. Tin was also included in the scope of control items. The standards on tin, however, are dependent upon discharge volumes. Due to the fact that some optoelectronic materials and components manufacturers operate in industrial parks other than petrochemical industrial parks, indium, gallium, and molybdenum was added into the scope of control items. Control limits on molybdenum were established for businesses using molybdenum as a raw material and engaged in wafer foundry and semiconductor manufacturing, chemical engineering, metal basic production, electroplating and metallic surface treatment, PCB manufacturing, and pesticide manufacturing, other industries, as well as the public sewage systems in science and industrial parks. In line with stricter regulations on coal-burning power plants imposed by US EPA and the Convention on Mercury, stricter control limits for mercury, arsenic, and selenium were imposed for coal-burning power plants discharging flue gas desulfurization wastewater into water treatment facilities.
In response to the addition of enterprise classifications and definitions, effluent standards were amended and announced on April 29th, 2019, mostly to establish control items and limits for seawater desalination plants and steam suppliers, clarify methods for measuring total residual chlorine in highly salinized effluent water and control it by chlorine produced oxidants, and amend the applicable conditions for waste incinerators as an effort to strengthen dioxin emission control.
Tighten/add effluent standards file