Effectiveness of countermeasure options for chemical facilities against the discharge of chemical substances into rivers caused by a large earthquake: case study of the Yodo river system in Osaka prefecture, Japan

The version of record of this article, first published in Environment Systems and Decisions, is available online at Publisher’s website: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10669-024-09982-x.Technological accidents triggered by natural hazards, which are commonly referred to as Natech events, are rare occurrences yet carry the potential for significant damage. Specifically, the release of hazardous chemicals into the aquatic environment and community water systems poses a grave threat to human health and society. Accordingly, we must conduct assessments that consider the potential consequences of these accidents. In this study, we examined the criteria for implementing spill protection measures to mitigate river spills of chemical substances using information on the amount of chemical substances and their toxicity. The countermeasure options readily available to employees at industrial plants and chemical storage sites where a chemical spill might originate included emergency shut-off valves, bunds and related spill containment structures, and other spill prevention measures. In this case study, a combination of countermeasure options was evaluated to examine the effectiveness of spill mitigation in the Yodo River located in the Kyoto Prefecture of Japan. Results of the case study showed that bunds were emerged as the most useful countermeasure option, reducing the probability of accidents occurring and impact of accidents. We also defined a methodology for calculating the chemical storage volumes appropriate for different countermeasures to ensure that the concentration of chemicals that could reach the water intake does not exceed the standard values. We believe that these methodologies can help chemical-handling companies make decisions when countermeasure options for responding to a chemical spill into a river. Chemical-handling companies can estimate the risk to downstream water treatment plants in the chemical spill, which can also help them consider mitigation measures

CO₂ Emissions from Blade Waste Treatments under Wind Power Scenario in Japan from 2021 to 2100

Nogaki S., Ito L., Nakakubo T., et al. CO₂ Emissions from Blade Waste Treatments under Wind Power Scenario in Japan from 2021 to 2100. Sustainability (Switzerland) 16, 2165 (2024); https://doi.org/10.3390/su16052165.Wind power generation has been introduced to reduce carbon emissions; however, recycling or recovering the waste of wind blades, which contain fibre-reinforced plastic, is difficult. Converting the recovered materials for secondary use is also difficult owing to the decreased strength and low material value. Many countries, including Japan, have not considered the future energy and CO₂ emission scenarios, particularly CO₂ emissions from wind blade waste. Based on these scenarios, Japan has planned to introduce large amounts of onshore/offshore wind power generation through 2050. Therefore, we aimed to evaluate quantitatively the total amount of waste and the global warming potential (GWP) from multiple blade waste treatment processes. Based on the average lifetime of blades (20–25 years), we found that the GWP of wind blade waste treatment in Japan may reach a maximum of 197.3–232.4 MtCO2eq by 2060–2065. Based on this lifetime, the wind blade treatment in 2050 accounted for 63.9–80.1% of the total greenhouse gas emissions in 2050. We also showed that the rise in CO₂ emissions from the wind blade wastes would make up 82.5–93.6% of the potential reduction in the GWP, which is achievable by shifting from thermal to wind power generation