The project plan for this year will be implemented from July 10, 2008 until July 10, 2009. The main purpose of the plan is to assist the Environmental Protection Administration and the sponsoring county and municipal governments to promote the recycling of incinerator ash and the set-up, construction, operation, supervision and management of final disposal sites, as well as to carry out engineering investigation and analysis associated with the recycling of bottom ash from waste incineration and to set up a supervisory and management system for recycled incinerator bottom ash used as an additive in concrete production. In order to promote and to integrate the work associated with the Mercury-containing Waste Control and Reduction initiative, an analysis of the mercury content of ash from large-scale domestic waste incinerators is carried out. Regulations of advanced countries on mercury content in incinerator ash are collected and analyzed. In addition, in order to solve the problem of urban sewage sludge occupying landfill space, we plan to draft a set of urban sewage sludge recycling management guidelines and to assist in the review of individual cases of urban sewage sludge recycling applications. This year (2008), 18 incineration plants in 12 counties and municipalities have participated in bottom ash recycling. Statistics collected from 2003 to 2008 show that a total of 1.65 million metric tons have been recycled, which represents a utilization rate of 68.3%. The plan also assists in the completion of the review of processing fees submitted on a quarterly basis by counties and municipalities participating in incinerator bottom ash recycling programs and final disposal sites, as well as the provision of consultation services to these local governments and the hosting of an operational review meeting, which will serve as an important basis for future policy formulation. According to the engineering field surveys and tests conducted on site for products created with recycled incinerator bottom ash this year, the quality control of bottom ash recycling requires further effort and improvement, and a breakthrough in the implementation guidelines and applications is required in order for building brands and sales channels to be successful. In addition, through a sampling analysis of the mercury content of incinerator ash collected from large-scale incinerators, the quantity of mercury and its spread can be estimated. The results show that the domestic promotion of the mandatory garbage sorting and recycling appears to be effective for recycling objectives. For the purposes of building a society that advocates "zero waste, full recycling and resource recirculation," we have helped to develop the initiatives Encouragement of Private Participation in Refuse Incineration Ash Recycling Program and Management Guidelines of the Recycling of Urban Sewage Sludge (Draft), and are continuing to promote the recycling and reuse of waste incineration ash and municipal sewage sludge as well as engaging in related pursuits.

incinerator ash, Bottom Ash Reuse Plant, final disposal site, sewage sludge