"Cradle to Grave" - "Trip Ticket" chemical waste control scheme

In Hong Kong, the process of treating chemical waste has been regulated by the Environmental Protection Department (EPD). That is to say, the entire cycle, from when it is generated, whom to collect, and where to dispose, has been monitored and regulated by the Waste Disposal (Chemical Waste)(General) Regulation under the Waste Disposal Ordinance (Laws of Hong Kong Chapter 354).

Waste producer, waste collector and end-point disposal facility are all being regulated EPD. All chemical waste movements are monitored by EPD, and have to comply with the "Cradle to Grave" chemical waste control scheme.


"Cradle to Grave" chemical waste control scheme

A unique trip ticket system has been adopted to further reduce the chance of illegal dumping and inappropriate treatment. After generating and before disposing the chemical waste, the waste producer will have to apply and obtain a chemical waste producer license from EPD. The waste producer will then need to complete a set of three forms, also known as the ‘trip ticket’, before the chemical waste is being collected and removed from the premises. Under this system, one copy of the trip ticket has to be kept by the waste producer, the second copy of the trip ticket will be retained by the waste collector upon delivery of the waste to a reception point, and the original copy of the trip ticket will be retained by the reception point (disposal facility).

All chemical waste removal activity and/or movement should only be appointed to licensed collectors, which are approved and licensed by EPD. After waste collection, the waste collector must transfer the waste to the reception point 48 hours after collection.

Dunwell is the only ISO14001 certified chemical waste collector operating a licensed reception facility to provide a one-stop and ultimate solution to the waste producers. Our business scope includes collecting spent lubricant, spent non-halogenated solvent, spent wastewater contaminated by lubricant, spent solid waste such as rags, filters, bottles, paint cans, fluorescent lamp tubes, and spent batteries. By providing one-stop chemical waste disposal service, once appointed, Dunwell will be committed to the task of collection and disposal of the chemical waste for the waste producer. The entire business operation can fully comply with the requirement of EPD.

We rank the "trip-ticket" system amongst our highest priority. All movements of chemical waste, including cleanup, transport, and disposal activities have been put into record. We guarantee that all chemical waste will be properly treated in our chemical waste treatment and recycling centre, located in Yuen Long Industrial Estate. Useful and recyclable materials will be extracted and transferred to corresponding recycling centres. In order to increase transparency, inspection of "trip ticket" might also be arranged for particular clients upon request.

 

"Trip ticket" - a set of three forms: original copy, in white, to be retained by the reception point; waste collector's copy in yellow; and waste producer's copy in pink

Proper storage of chemical waste

Under the Waste Disposal Ordinance (Cap.354) - Waste Disposal Regulations, Hong Kong Environmental Protection Department has defined chemical waste as any substance or thing being scrap material, effluent, or an unwanted substance or by-product arising from the application of or in the course of any process or trade activity, and which is or contains any substance or chemical specified in the prescribed schedule if such substance or chemical occurs in such form (http://www.epd.gov.hk/epd/english/environmentinhk/waste/guide_ref/files/guide_e.pdf), quantity or concentration so as to cause pollution, constitute a danger to health or risk of pollution to the environment.

Chemical waste should be properly and temporarily stored by the waste producer before the waste is transferred by the waste collector to a licensed treatment provider. There are certain criteria should be applied to the containers for temporary chemical waste storage, including its material, condition, etc. Such containers should be placed in a suitable area located close to the waste generation source for temporary storage and the containers should be either drums or jerricans type. The size of the containers should be determined according to the quantity and frequency of chemical waste to be stored. Common types of materials to be used for the containers include plastics and steel.

The storage area should be enclosed on at least three sides by partition, wall or fence with a height of not less than two metres or the total height of containers in stack, whichever is less. Such enclosures should be built with concrete, brick of steel with fixed erection to the areas. In addition, appropriate labeling should also be applied for accurate indication to ensure proper and safe handling, storage and transport of the waste.

Source: Hong Kong Environmental Protection Department















For specific details regarding Hong Kong Environmental Protection Department's guideline of chemical waste storage, please visit: http://www.epd.gov.hk/epd/english/environmentinhk/waste/guide_ref/guide_cwc.html

妥善儲存化學廢物

根據“廢物處置條例”（第354章） - “廢物處置條例”，香港環境保護署界定化學廢物為應用於或進行任何工序或活動期間所產生的廢料、廢水或無用的殘餘物質或副產品，而此等物品中，含有規例附表內開列的物質或化學物品 (http://www.epd.gov.hk/epd/tc_chi/environmentinhk/waste/guide_ref/guide_cwc_sub1.html)，而其形態、份量及濃度又足以危害人體健康或污染自然環境。

在化學廢物轉移交至合資格的廢物處理處之前，廢物產生者必須暫時及妥善存放廢物。而暫時存放化學廢物的容器，則有一定的規格標準，包括物料、尺寸等。化學廢物容器應置於一個合適的地方，用於臨時儲放，容器大多是鼓或罐型。容器的大小應根據廢物的數量和頻率而定。常見的容器材質類型包括塑膠和鋼。

容器的存儲地方應至少有三面圍以牆壁、間隔或圍欄，其高度不低於兩米或相等於堆叠起的容器總高度，以較低者為準。圍壁可以混凝土、磚、鋼等物料建造。另外，適當的標籤也可以確保廢物能被妥善安全地處理、貯存和運送。

資料來源：香港環境保護署

有關存放化學廢物的具體細節，請參閱香港環境保護署的指引：
http://www.epd.gov.hk/epd/tc_chi/environmentinhk/waste/guide_ref/guide_cwc.html

石油對我們的影響

在日常的各種工商業活動中，許多機器在操作過程中都要使用潤滑油。廢油，簡單地說，便是經過從原油提煉的油，而導致物理性和/或化學性的污染。在一般情況下，污染雜質包括污垢、金屬粒子、水以及其他可與油混合的化學品，導致油的性能逐漸減退。若不妥善處理，廢潤滑油將會嚴重破壞環境及生態，亦因此，廢潤滑油一般被列為化學廢物，需要特別處理。 

石油的化學

石油和其相關的產品都是由碳氫化合物所組成，即同時含有碳和氫的化合物。碳氫化合物的基本分子組合為甲烷，即天然氣的主要成分。越多碳原子和氫原子會形成越長的鏈狀。以潤滑油為例，每個分子都含有的二十至七十個碳原子。這些分子都特別穩定，並不會被縮減。亦即是說，只要添加或更換油內用盡的物質，便可把珍貴的石油回用。

對環境和人類健康的影響

廢油內含有大量的有毒物質，一旦進入環境，將不易被降解。比如，車用機油中含有一種碳氫化合物 - 多環芳烴 (PAH)，已被證實是一種致癌物質。在機器的發動過程中，引擎的細小金屬碎屑如鉛、砷、鋅等也會混入油中。而因發動所引起的熱力也會改變油的化學結構。若滲漏、溢出、或處理不當，廢油及其內的有毒物質將會進入水體，經雨水渠、溪流、河流、湖泊、或地下水源，最後流入海洋，污染我們的飲用水源和毒害海洋生物，到最後，受害的可能都會是我們自己。

Emergency chemical and oil spill cleanup service

Risk management has now becoming an important component for many corporations nowadays, in different operation units. In recent years, Dunwell has been providing one–stop chemical waste management to government departments, public enterprises, and transportation-related industry. In particular, we offer emergency spill clean up standby service which is tailor-made for our clients who require specialized emergency response and spill clean up service.

 

On request, our team will be at standby status; upon occurrence of contingencies such as chemical spillage and/ or oil leakage, our team will then provide immediate and fast response to perform remediate services that can remove the pollutants and restore the original conditions. Our professional teams are well trained and have the expertise in treating chemical waste and oil spill, we provide our customers with round-the-clock and one-stop service to solve contingent spillage at any time, allowing clients to focus on their own business and operations. Our solution can greatly reduce the financial or reputational loss caused by both man-made and natural chemical spillage, which helps clients to achieve a better corporate social responsible standard.

安全條例升級

 

每個隔油池都有多於一個渠蓋

多年來，安全一直是正昌集團其中一個非常重視的範圍，並定期為培養員工及外判承包商提供訓練，致力培養及提升他們對職業安全及健康的意識。同時，我們也定期進行審查和修改現有的政策和與工作有關的程序，增強工作的安全性。

 

自2011年，我們審閱和修改我們清洗隔油池的工作程序，採用更高的安全標準，更全面地保護工作人員免受任何形式的傷害。

清洗隔油池的工作步驟首先包括打開沙井的渠蓋，一般而言，每個隔油池都擁有多於一個渠蓋。過去，工作人員大多先一次打開所有渠蓋，然後才開始插入水喉進行清潔。由於過去並沒有損傷事故，所以該步驟一般被普遍接受，而工作人員都為節省時間及更方便快捷完成工作去採用此捷徑。



在安全條例修改之前，工人大多一次過打開所有渠蓋

然而，在同一時間打開一個以上沙井的渠蓋卻會有機會令工具什至工作人員自身掉進隔油池。因此，我們修改了清洗隔油池的工作程序，嚴格禁止同時打開一個以上的渠蓋。亦即是說，工人必須遵循步驟，先打開第一個渠蓋，完成清潔工作後，把它關上後才可打開第二個渠蓋及重複的之前的工序。通過這次安全監管的升級，損傷率和未遂事故將可被有效地減低，而工作人員的安全意識也可被進一步提升。