Clean production standards: the chlor-alkali and soda ash industry takes the lead

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Recently, it was learned from the China Petroleum and Chemical Industry Association that the chemical industry will, for the first time, promote clean production through recommended standards in order to improve resource utilization and reduce or eliminate the generation of waste materials. Among them, three standards – the Clean Production Standard for the Chlor-alkali Industry (Sodium Hydroxide), the Clean Production Standard for the Chlor-alkali Industry (Polyvinyl Chloride), and the Clean Production Standard for the Soda Ash Industry – have already begun to be developed, with completion expected by the end of the year. 　　Soda ash and chlor-alkali processes are major energy consumers in the chemical industry, and the treatment of \"three wastes\" has become a bottleneck in the industry’s development, directly affecting the market competitiveness of its products. Zhou Xianhui, deputy secretary-general of the Petrochemical Association, pointed out that although the chlor-alkali industry has already begun to adopt technologies for managing \"three types of waste\" such as the recovery of vinyl chloride distillation off-gases, the closed-loop recycling of calcium carbide slag supernatant, and the comprehensive use of calcium carbide slag in cement production, and the soda ash industry is also taking various measures to save energy and reduce consumption, it will be very difficult to achieve the goals set for the 11th Five-Year Plan period: a 20% reduction in energy consumption per unit of added value, a 10% reduction in emissions of major pollutants, and energy savings of 100 million tons of standard coal among the 1,000 key energy-consuming enterprises, if the old approach of \"pollute first, then clean up\" continues to be followed. 　　Commissioned by the Ministry of Environmental Protection, the Petrochemical Industry Association, the Chinese Academy of Environmental Sciences, and other organizations joined forces to begin developing clean production standards for the chlor-alkali and soda ash industries in 2006. The standard specifies three levels of technical indicators for clean production levels: Level 1 represents the international advanced level of clean production ； Level 2 represents the advanced level of clean production in China ； Level 3 represents the basic level of clean production in the country. 　　These standards will be formulated in line with the concept of pollution prevention throughout the whole process, based on current industry technologies, equipment, and management levels, as well as the general requirements for clean production. The standards will set comprehensive requirements regarding the production processes and equipment needed for manufacturing products, indicators for the use of resources and energy, product specifications, indicators for pollutant generation, indicators for waste recycling, and environmental management, thereby promoting clean production at every stage – from the selection of raw materials to the production process and product disposal. 　　Officials from companies such as Tianjin Alkali Plant said in interviews with reporters that currently, local standards are not unified, **which makes supervision difficult; it is hard to determine the level of clean production among enterprises, and thus it is challenging to promote clean production. The development of this standard will serve to monitor and assess the level of clean production in enterprises, as well as to encourage their production practices, thereby promoting an improvement in their environmental protection capabilities and driving technological advancements.