Taiwan's resource recycling industry will soon have its own dedicated "virtual park." This has nothing to do with the Metaverse, nor is it a traditional industrial park. Instead, it's an innovative mechanism developed by the Environmental Protection Agency to promote a circular economy. This system allows businesses to team up with midstream and downstream waste recycling organizations and processing plants to create "resource recycling networks." Since upstream, midstream, and downstream businesses are located in different cities and counties, yet form part of the same recycling industry chain, waste disposal plans can be packaged and applied for together. This virtual park provides a comprehensive overview of the history of waste recycling.
The Environmental Protection Agency recently released a regulation. Unlike the past, when the "waste clearance letters" of each industry chain had to be reviewed by different competent authorities, which was time-consuming and laborious, the new regulation is to invite local and central relevant departments as well as experts and representatives of public associations to jointly review them at one time, saving unnecessary communication time and costs.
The upstream, midstream, and downstream management units are different, and the review of the abandoned documents is time-consuming.
Taiwan's robust manufacturing industry is also moving toward a circular economy process. For example, after high-tech factories etch printed circuit boards, the waste acid containing copper ions is not discarded. Instead, it is sent to "recycling organizations" to be made into copper salt raw materials and copper powder raw materials. These are then sent to "processing plants" to be remade into products such as copper metal or various metal salts, and finally returned to the market or the production line.
To effectively manage waste recycling, the Environmental Protection Agency requires that businesses of a certain size or that produce hazardous waste, as well as waste "recycling organizations," must submit a "waste disposal plan" (abbreviated as "waste disposal plan") to local or central authorities for review before they can operate.
A waste clearance document is like a company's birth chart for waste management, detailing the types, quantities, hazardous properties, and disposal methods of waste. Generally, any changes to waste management operations require a request for amendments to the waste clearance document.
The problem is that waste clearance documents are typically reviewed by local environmental protection bureaus. For example, a manufacturer in Kaohsiung might partner with a recycling company in Tainan, and a downstream processing plant in Yunlin. County and city environmental protection bureaus must verify details across counties and cities, creating administrative inefficiencies and slowing down businesses' efforts to properly utilize industrial waste.
Xu Zhilun, Deputy Director of the Waste Management Division of the Environmental Protection Agency, gave an example. For example, if a technology company's waste acid was originally supplied to other industries, but later, due to improvements in purification technology, it needs to be used in its own production processes, the waste clearance document would need to be revised due to the process changes. Furthermore, not only upstream businesses, but also downstream recycling organizations and processing plants would need to submit revisions due to changes in the quantity and type of "raw materials" they receive.
"Birthdates Are All Laid Out" - A Look at the Past and Present of Waste
Earlier this month, the Environmental Protection Agency released the "Key Points for Reviewing Waste Cleanup Plans in the Resource Recycling Network," allowing businesses to integrate upstream, midstream, and downstream businesses in the recycling chain and apply for resource recycling network projects in a package.
Companies interested in applying must submit a "Resource Recycling Network Waste Disposal Plan" to the EPA, including basic information on upstream, midstream, and downstream manufacturers, a recycling network diagram, waste types, and plans for removal, treatment, and reuse. The Resource Recycling Network Plan undergoes a joint review process. The EPA convenes representatives from the relevant industry authorities (such as the Industrial Development Bureau and the Science Park Administration), environmental protection bureaus in the locations of upstream and downstream manufacturers, experts, scholars, and public associations. The review is completed within 45 days (with a maximum extension of 45 days), and includes a review of any changes to the waste disposal plan.
While businesses are still required to submit waste clearance forms according to the law, the joint review eliminates lengthy communications between administrative departments and allows the entire waste recycling chain—from waste generation, purification, reuse, and processing—to be reviewed simultaneously by all relevant parties. Hsu Chi-lun described it as "having your birth chart laid out."
Good quality is essential for a circular economy; businesses must also propose quality control and sales plans.
The "Resource Recycling Network Plan" will review, in addition to the waste types and treatment plans already listed in the waste clearance form, applicants will also be required to submit a "self-management plan" and a "product quality management and sales plan."
Applicants (usually upstream companies) must meticulously outline how they will manage and control waste in their own management plans. To truly achieve the effects of a circular economy, businesses must also propose "quality management and sales plans." The Ministry of Economic Affairs, industry associations, experts, and academics are all likely to provide feedback on technical feasibility during this process.
Lin Jianfen, Section Chief of the Industrial Recycling Management Group at the Environmental Protection Administration's Waste Management Division, stated that under typical models, recycling organizations typically achieve "basic processing capabilities." However, in the new "resource recycling network" model, since raw material suppliers are also involved, special requirements will be placed on the quality of recycled products, giving the recycling network a greater opportunity to achieve economic benefits.
Currently, the Environmental Protection Agency is planning the largest revision of the Waste Disposal Act (Waste Disposal Act) in 20 years, and the "resource recycling network" model has also been included in the focus of the revision. Xu Zhilun revealed that the content of the "resource recycling network" will be clearly stipulated in the Waste Disposal Act in the future to make the source of the law clearer.
Source: Environmental Information Center (https://e-info.org.tw/node/235531)
