Table 2.3. Environmental impacts of selected industries

A substantial share of industrial growth in developing countries revolves around the transformation of raw materials into industrial products such as steel, paper, and chemicals. The production of industrial chemicals, for instance, has been shifting to the developing world.[121] Between 1990, this industry’s annual rate of growth was 5.6 percent in developing countries, compared with a mere 1 percent in the developed world. Not only are these processes resource-intensive, but also industries such as electricity generation, chemicals and petroleum refining, mining, paper production, and leather tanning tend to produce a disproportinately large amount of hazaradous and toxic wastes.

The following table shows the wide range of pollutants associated with these industries.

Chemicals (industrial inorganic and organic compounds, excluding petroleum products)

• Many and varied emissions depending on processes used and chemicals manufactured
• Emissions of particulate matter, SO2, NOX, CO, CFCs, VOCs and other organic chemicals, odors
• Risk of explosions and fires

• Use of process water and cooling water
• Emissions of organic chemicals, heavy metals (cadmium, mercury), suspended solids, organic matter, PCBs
• Risk of spills

• Chemical process wastes disposal problems
• Sludges from air and water pollution treatment disposal problems

• Emissions of SO2, NOX, CH4, CO2, CO, hydrogen sulphide, mercaptans, chlorine compounds, dioxins

• Use of process water
• Emissions of suspended solids, organic matter, chlorinated organic substances, toxins (dioxins)

• Cement emissions of dust, NOX, CO2, chromium, lead, CO
• Glass emissions of lead, arsenic, SO2, vanadium, CO, hydrofluoric acid, soda ash, potash, specialty constituents (e.g., chromium)
• Ceramics emissions of silica, SO2, NOX, fluorine compounds

• Emissions of process water contaminated by oils and heavy metals

• Extraction of raw materials
• Soil contamination with metals and waste disposal problems

• Emissions of dust from extraction, storage, and transport of ore and concentrate
• Emissions of metals (e.g., mercury) from drying of ore concentrate

• Contamination of surface water and groundwater by highly acidic mine water containing toxic metals (e.g., arsenic, lead, cadmium)
• Contamination by chemicals used in metal extraction (e.g., cyanide)

• Major surface disturbance and erosion
• Land degradation by large slag heaps

• Emissions of SO2, NOX, hydrogen sulphide, PAHs, lead, arsenic, cadmium, chromium, copper, mercury, nickel, selenium, zinc, organic compounds, PCDDs/PCDFs, PCBs, dust, particulate matter, hydrocarbons, acid mists
• Exposure to ultraviolet and infrared radiation, ionizing radiation
• Risks of explosions and fires

• Use of process water
• Emissions of organic matter, tars and oil, suspended solids, metals, benzene, phenols, acids, sulphides, sulphates, ammonia, cyanides, thiocyanates, thiosulphates, fluorides, lead, zinc (scrubber effluent)

• Slag, sludges, oil and grease residues, hydrocarbons, salts, sulphur compounds, heavy metals, soil contamination and waste disposal problems

• Emissions of particulate matter, SO2, NOX, CO, hydrogen sulphide, hydrogen chloride, hydrogen fluoride, chlorine, aluminum, arsenic, cadmium, chromium, copper, zinc, mercury, nickel, lead, magnesium, PAHs, fluorides, silica, manganese, carbon black, hydrocarbons, aerosols

• Scrubber water containing metals
• Gas-scrubber effluents containing solids, fluorine, hydrocarbons

• Sludges from effluent treatment, coatings from electrolysis cells (containing carbon and fluorine) soil contamination and waste disposal problems

• Emissions of dust from extraction, storage, and transport of coal
• Emissions of CO and SO2 from burning slag heaps
• CH4 emissions from underground formations
• Risk of explosions and fires

• Contamination of surface water and groundwater by highly saline or acidic mine water

• Major surface disturbance and erosion
• Subsidence of ground above mines
• Land degradation by large slag heaps

• Emissions of SO2, NOX, hydrogen sulphide, HCs, benzene, CO, CO2, particulate matter, PAHs, mercaptans, toxic organic coumpounds, odors
• Risk of explosions and fires

• Use of cooling water
• Emissions of HCs, mercaptans, caustics, oil, phenols, chromium, effluent from gas scrubbers

• Hazardous waste, sludges from effluent treatment, spent catalysts, tars

• Emissions including leather dust, hydrogen sulphide, CO2, chromium compounds

• Use of process water
• Effluents from the many toxic solutions used, containing suspended solids, sulphates, chromium

• Chromium sludges