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[GreenYes] New Taiwan Recycling Policies begin in January 2006


(Includes potential application of RFID technology. For more info on RFID
Recycling Applications and Impact see www.RecyclingTech.org
<http://www.recyclingtech.org/> )



New (Taiwan) EPA policies set to begin in January



The new year will usher in environmental policies that the government hopes
will deal more efficiently with garbage nationwide and help track waste
disposal vehicles to prevent illegal dumping.



The key measure announced this past week by the Environmental Protection
Administration will be the extension of the garbage separation policy to all
corners of Taiwan on January 1, 2006.



The program, requiring residents to sort their garbage into three categories
-- ordinary garbage, recyclables and food scraps -- has been enforced in ten
cities and counties since the beginning of 2005.



Garbage that is not properly separated will be rejected, and offenders will
be fined between NT$1,200 to NT$6,000. Local EPA staffers will make random
checks of garbage bags to ensure that residents are abiding by the new
policy.



EPA officials noted that in the ten areas using garbage separation, the
amount of garbage collected between January and October of this year
declined by 10 percent compared to the same period last year, when the
policy was not yet in effect. Thirty percent more recyclables and 65 percent
more food scraps were collected under the new program during the same 2005
period than through more random collection efforts in 2004.



Besides extending the policy to all parts of the country, the EPA is also
hoping to more efficiently recycle food scraps, which account for nearly
one-quarter of all garbage collected. Burying them in landfills or
incinerating create unnecessary burdens, the agency believes.



In landfills, the water that seeps from the scraps can potentially taint
water management systems, while in incinerators, that same moisture hinders
the burning facility from reaching its most efficient operating temperature,
the EPA said.



Up to now, 75 percent of the food scraps recycled are used as pig feed, with
the remainder turned into fertilizer.



With recent concerns over diseases spread through animals, however, the EPA,
together with the Council of Agriculture, decided to restrict pig farm
owners from using food scraps to feed their animals. Instead, most of the
organic waste will be exploited as fertilizer, but to do so, factors such as
land, the environment, quality, and product approach need to be further
reviewed, the EPA said.



Members of the ROC Swine Association and several scholars objected to the
proposal at a forum last week, asserting that food scraps were more
expensive as fertilizers than their chemical rivals and, therefore, would
not be commercially successful.



The association also complained that the policy reversal was unfair to pig
owners because it would deprive its members of their most accessible feed
source after they had cooperated with the government to consume a high
percentage of the food scraps collected.



The EPA seemed ready to proceed with their new policy, however, despite the
pig owners' objections.



In another new initiative, the EPA will try to improve the efficiency of
garbage collection in rural areas. The agency is considering leaving one
garbage truck in every area and adding recycling bins specifically for food
scraps.



Another notable innovation by the EPA last week was adding a tracking
mechanism for its online waste management declaration system. The
improvement was designed to track waste collecting vehicles and keep a close
eye on where the waste is disposed.



Combining the global positioning system with a mobile communication
apparatus, system operators get thirty-second updates on the vehicles'
latest positions. Over 1,300 waste collecting vehicles are currently
equipped with GPS devices, and inspectors have PDAs that can track
suspicious vehicles.



The EPA is also looking into a waste disposal logistics management tracking
system, in which the vehicles would have barcode readers and a radio
frequency identification device (RFID) installed. They would serve as an
identification card, recording in the EPA database the time of each entry
and exit of the vehicle into a disposal facility.



"Once these technologies are functioning appropriately, (the EPA) will
promote it to other government departments and local businesses that would
be helped by a tracking system like this," said Chen Hsiung-wen (陳雄文),
director of the EPA's Waste Management Department.



The EPA hopes that by capitalizing on these technologies, the waste disposal
process can be more transparent and lower the frequency of illegal dumping
around the country.



Source:Taiwan News(2005/12/05 14:50:16)

Find this article at:
http://english.www.gov.tw//TaiwanHeadlines/index.jsp?categid=10
<http://english.www.gov.tw/TaiwanHeadlines/index.jsp?categid=10&recordid=891
31> &recordid=89131







****************************

Robert W. Hollis

Carnegie Partners, Inc.

Ph 916 941-9053

eFax 916 290-0312

rhollis@no.address

www.CarnegiePartners.com <http://www.carnegiepartners.com/>





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