The United States uses available technology to reduce emissions of hazardous substances

On March 16, 2011, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the standards of the "utility MACT" process after a long delay, which is a process for reducing hazardous substances. Air pollution like mercury. Here are some ideas about using available technology to reduce mercury emissions:

Illustration. (NASA source) .

From a medical perspective, " utility MACT " is a closed and safe process to manage hazardous wastes that pollute the air. Mercury and other toxic industrial wastes are clearly the cause of diseases: asthma, bronchitis, and even harm the health of newborns and babies. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates that by implementing the " utility MACT " process now, it will save about 17,000 lives every year.

In 2015, there will not be thousands of victims of air pollution, leaving jobs to fight over emergency rooms. Preventing future casualties will save tens of millions of dollars in health care costs and prevent economic losses when millions of patients quit their jobs. This will also create thousands of jobs in the pollution control industry.

According to the report of the Clean Air Institute (ICAC), in 2010, mercury control technology was installed on 38 coal-fired power plants and more than 106 other plants are also in demand.

In a 2010 press release, Arch Coal is proud that ADA-ES has " developed a bromine-activated carbon technology that provides a means to achieve the removal of 90% of mercury emissions from coal ."

In 2009, the US neutral government office (GAO) conducted a thorough review of " available technology to help control mercury emissions ". This is what it finds:

The cost of purchasing and installing adsorbent injection system and monitoring market-priced equipment averages about 3.6 million USD for 14 coal-fired boilers operating the absorption system alone to meet the requirements of government. This cost is a fraction of the cost of buying other pollution control devices. That is, a 90% reduction in mercury emissions causes air pollution at a low cost.

The National Association of Clean Air Agency (NACCA) notes that many countries have implemented mercury emissions rules, most of which require cutting up to 90% of mercury emissions. air pollution.

In the next 10 years, the cost of reducing mercury emissions to the living environment, will appear relatively modest compared to its great benefits in health, productivity, social justice, and Integrity of habitats and ecosystems. In the future, when our children and grandchildren ask about responsibility, they will not ask why we pay a few extra pennies for the cost of reducing mercury emissions to the environment, which they will require. We answer: the reason why we let many people get sick and die due to the habitat contaminated with toxic industrial waste from previous years, in our past, while we capitalized. recognize the seriousness of the pollution problem for a long time.