Saturday, 27/09/2014 | 15:15

New regulations for handling ash and slag in thermal power plants

The Prime Minister has issued a decision on a number of solutions to handle and use ash, slag from thermal power plants as raw material for building materials production.

New regulations for handling ash and slag in thermal power plants

New regulations for handling ash and slag in thermal power plants

The decision stipulates: the thermal power plants (TPP) are operating or have had the investment decision must invest (or cooperate investment) the chains and equipment ensuring technical standards, regulations for treating and using ash and slag as a raw material for building materials production before 2020.

For extending or improving thermal power plants, it is required to include the design of the ash and slag treatment chain and equipment ensuring technical standards, regulations in the investment project. Until 2020 it is only to provide for thermal power plants a drump area, enough to contain maximal volume of the slag for two year generation in accordance with capacity of the project.

The benefits of the solutions are: decreasing environmental pollution, economizing land area for drumps and natural resource for building materials, participating in sustainable development of the country.

For implementation of the decision the function agencies need to: i) supplement the regulations on ash and slag treatment to content of basic design and procedures of appraisal and approval of thermal power plant projects, ii) define a roadmap for TPPs to complete their investment in ash and slag treatment chain and equipment and for forming market of treated ash and slag, iii) supplement the mechanical products for ash and slag treatment chain made in Vietnam to the list of focusing mechanical products in accordance with the Decision No 10/2009/QĐ-TTg dated on 16/1/2009 and the mechanisms for pilot implementation of domestic design and manufacture of TPP equipment in 2012-2025 period, in accordance with the Decision No 1791/QĐ-TTg dated on 29/11/2012 by Prime Minister.

Activities of processing ash, slag and using finished products to produce building materials will enjoy the support and priority like activities of solid waste handling (recycle, reuse) in accordance with the current regulations on solid waste management. Investors of the thermal power plants should be responsible to pay the costs for ash, slag handling in case if they could not by themselves invest the equipment for ash and slag processing to raw material for building materials production.

;