Emission standards for industrial pollution from batteries

The newly issued Battery Industrial Pollutant Emission Standard (GB30484-2013) is of great significance to China's efforts to implement the international conventions on environmental protection and strengthen the prevention and control of heavy metal pollution. The head of the Science and Technology Standards Department of the Ministry of Environmental Protection was interviewed by reporters on how to understand and implement the standard. And answered the reporter's questions.

What is the background for setting standards for emissions of pollutants from the battery industry?

Our country is the world's largest battery producer and exporter. Among them, zinc manganese battery exports exceeded 60 %, secondary battery exports exceeded 65 %, and solar battery exports exceeded 90 %. At the same time, with the rapid development of automobile, electric vehicle, communication and other industries, the battery industry still has a large development space in China.

Battery industry is a key industry for heavy metal consumption and emissions. In recent years, heavy metal pollution accidents have occurred frequently, and the state has issued documents such as the Twelfth Five-Year Plan for Comprehensive Prevention and Control of Heavy Metal Pollution, comprehensively strengthening the environmental supervision of heavy metal industries such as lead battery production. At present, China's battery industry implements the Integrated Sewage Emission Standards (GB8978-1996) and the Integrated Emission Standards for Air Pollutants (GB16297-1996), which have low barriers to entry and are not well targeted, making it necessary to formulate and implement stricter emission standards. The Ministry of Environmental Protection has decided to formulate standards for the discharge of pollutants from the battery industry.

What are the emission standards for industrial pollution in batteries?

How has the Emission Standards for Battery Industries improved emission control requirements?

First, the emission limit values of pollutants have been generally tightened, including emission limits for pollutants such as lead, Mercury, cadmium, nickel, zinc, manganese, and silver in existing and new battery companies, as well as unorganized emission limits for factories; The second is to enhance the operability of standards, and to clarify the pollution factors that should be controlled by different types of battery companies. The third is to embody the principle of total quantity control and set the benchmark displacement of different types of battery units; Fourth, the applicability of the standard is further strengthened, and the maximum allowable emission rate regulations that are difficult to operate in practice are removed. Fifth, special emission limits for pollutants applicable to environmentally sensitive areas have been added.

What emission control level is the Emission Standards for Battery Industries?

The emission limit of pollutants set by the Battery Industry Pollutant Emission Standards is stricter than the current national comprehensive emission standards, and it is also stricter than some existing local emission standards, which is equivalent to the average control level of developed countries. In areas where heavy metals have accumulated serious pollution, it is necessary to formulate and implement stricter local emission standards, or to set stricter control requirements through environmental assessment and approval, and emission permits. For this purpose, the standard clearly stipulates that this standard is the basic requirement for emission control of pollutants in the battery industry. Local people's governments at the provincial level may formulate local standards for the discharge of pollutants not specified in these standards; For pollutant items already specified in this standard, local pollutant discharge standards that are stricter than these standards may be formulated. Environmental impact assessment documents are required to be executed in accordance with approved environmental impact assessment documents, which are more stringent than this or local standards.

What are the expected costs and benefits of the Battery Industrial Emission Standards?

The implementation of this standard is expected to reduce annual emissions of waste water from the battery industry by 700,000 tons; COD emissions could be reduced by 448 tons; The emissions of lead and cadmium in water were reduced by 3.74 tons and 0.04 tons respectively, and the emissions of lead in the atmosphere were reduced by 15 tons. Correspondingly, the battery industry needs to increase environmental protection investment, add about 1.6 billion yuan in environmental protection investment, and the annual operating cost is 200 million yuan. From the point of view of controlling heavy metal pollution, promoting the technological progress and structural optimization of the battery industry, the expected environmental benefits and investment intensity are appropriate, and the standard cost is affordable for the battery industry. Of course, some technological backwardness, serious pollution, relying on environmental dividends to survive the enterprises will be eliminated.

Battery industry has what feasible standard measure?

Enterprises shall take measures to prevent and reduce the generation and emission of pollutants throughout the process of control. In terms of raw materials, reducing emissions of toxic and harmful substances through substitution of primary and secondary materials; On the product side, reducing heavy metal consumption such as lead through changes in product structure(such as the development and application of lead-carbon batteries) to reduce pollutant emissions; In terms of process equipment, the waste discharge load of primary and secondary materials and pollutants is reduced by adopting internalization and automatic assembly techniques; In terms of pollution control, the total amount of pollutant emissions will be reduced through the technologies of wastewater in-depth treatment, reuse, and multi-stage treatment of exhaust gases; In the field of environmental management, measures such as strengthening environmental supervision and monitoring and improving management systems have been taken to reduce environmental risks and curb heavy metal pollution accidents.

Why did the new standard add provisions on environmental quality monitoring around enterprises?

Heavy metal pollutants can be enriched in the surrounding population, soil, and water, and have long-term, cumulative, hidden, and latent characteristics. Even if the company meets the standards, long-term accumulation will cause certain pollution to the surrounding soil, plants, and people, resulting in pollution accidents. The basic means to find environmental problems and solve accumulated environmental pollution is to strengthen environmental monitoring. The 12th Five-Year National Plan for Environmental Monitoring, the Circular on Strengthening the Prevention and Control of Pollution in the Lead Battery and Regenerated Lead Industry and relevant local policies and regulations all set out the requirements for strengthening the monitoring of heavy metals in the peripheral environment of enterprises. Recently, the "Measures for Self-monitoring and Disclosure of Information by State Key Control Enterprises" and the "Measures for Supervision and Disclosure of Information on Pollution Sources by State Key Control Enterprises (Trial)" promulgated by the Ministry of Environmental Protection set forth the requirements for the establishment of a self-monitoring and reporting system for enterprises. The basic and principled provisions are incorporated into this standard.

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