Sources of dioxins
Sources of dioxins - Vinyl Council Australia
| There is now much better understanding about the sources of dioxins in the environment. The principal sources of dioxins in most western nations are municipal and medical waste incinerators and open burning (such as backyard burning in the U.S.). [4] US U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, September 2000. Also, Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Pollution, 1995, A Review of Dioxin Emissions in the UK. This is less applicable in Australia, where, backyard burning is not common, most medical waste incinerators are relatively modern and historically, there has been very little municipal waste incineration. Full details of dioxin emission estimates in Australia are reported in Dioxins in Australia: a summary of the findings of studies conducted from 2001 to 2004. The major sources of dioxin emissions in Australia are prescribed burning and bushfires. Chemical manufacturing in Australia is estimated to account for a very small percentage of overall emissions. View the full report: |
| www.environment.gov.au/settlements/publications/chemicals/dioxins/community-summary/index.html#download |
| Other manufacturing processes such as cement and metal smelting are far greater sources of emissions, a fact recognised by the Australian Government’s Action Plan on Dioxins [5] to meet its obligations under the Stockholm Convention. The Plan contains no actions specific to PVC in Australia. |
