Dongguan takes lead in centralized industrial wastewater treatment
By Qiu Quanlin in Guangzhou | chinadaily.com.cn | Updated: 2024-03-01 16:29
Dongguan, a major manufacturing and trade base in Guangdong province, has established five scattered industrial wastewater treatment facilities to treat wastewater generated by over ten thousand enterprises, according to the local ecology and environment authorities.
In the past, enterprises were responsible for treating their wastewater using their own facilities. However, most small and medium-sized enterprises couldn't independently handle wastewater due to an imbalance between their industrial scale and the high volume and wide distribution of scattered industrial wastewater.
The city implemented regulations to upgrade and address small-scale industrial wastewater pollution management on April 1, 2023, becoming the first city in China to do so.
Under the regulations, Dongguan has introduced the concept of shared wastewater treatment facilities, guiding social investment toward constructing scattered industrial wastewater treatment centers.
"The shared facilities allow enterprises to entrust the treatment of their scattered industrial wastewater to capable third parties for centralized treatment, providing them with a new pathway for industrial wastewater treatment," said Huang Yaoxing, deputy director of the Dongguan Environmental Protection Industry Promotion Center.
Over 12,000 enterprises have registered for Dongguan's wastewater management platform.
"In addition to small and medium-sized enterprises, this management model includes certain processes of some larger-scale enterprises. If these processes were to operate independently, the costs would be very high," said Huang.
The five treatment facilities were established through a social investment model, with a total processing capacity of 2,550 tons per day, meeting the demand for the centralized treatment of scattered industrial wastewater throughout the city.
According to Huang, a sixth facility is currently under construction.
The city transported and treated approximately 333,600 tons of scattered industrial wastewater in 2022, with an average daily treatment of around 914 tons.
