Teng-Yuan Hsiao

Modeling materials flow of waste concrete from construction and demolition wastes in Taiwan

Abstract Material flows of concrete from construction and demolition (CD (2) Around the year 2009, the national rate will more than triple to exceed the spike in C&D concrete waste generation that occurred after the Chi Chi earthquake 9/21/99, 8.5 MMT. (3) Aside from pilot-scale development of waste concrete utilization technology, nationwide recycling rates remain negligible. Without resource recovery, the volume of C&D waste generation by 2009 is projected to occupy nearly 7% of all existing and planned domestic landfill capacity. A target is established to raise resource recovery rates for waste concrete to 50% by 2005 and a 100% nationwide recycling rate by 2009.

A note on material flows of construction aggregates in Taiwan

Abstract Recent decades have witnessed accelerated growth in the demand for construction aggregates in Taiwan. The ecological pressures caused by riverbed mining of aggregates have resulted in shortages in domestic supply. Simultaneously, Taiwan must contend with the accumulated generation of construction wastes. Industrial ecology offers solutions that recover resources from construction wastes. For example, in areas of high-density urban construction, the use of crushed concrete can be economically attractive. To investigate environmentally sound and economically feasible solutions for satisfying future demand, researchers at National Taiwan University and Columbia University propose a study of the long-range consequences of utilizing domestic supply sources including construction waste.

Creating Shared Value Through Implementing Green Practices for Star Hotels

This study expands the concept of shared value through the value chain to include green practice innovation in star hotels in Taiwan. By employing the Delphi method, 44 green innovation indicators were established for star hotels to create an instrument to help address green practices’ implementation. Through creating shared value by using the top 18 indicators among eight dimensions, this study explores the preliminary green innovation framework to configure the value chain and to propose a conceptual model based on a shared value perspective. The findings contribute to the current literature by including green innovation processes into the shared value concept to complement the existing value chain design, and by addressing whether the green innovation indicators examined pertain to a value chain or process analysis. The results provide substantial contributions on how star hotels can efficiently implement green practices to simultaneously approach economic profits and environmental protection.

Short-term model of the production of construction aggregates in Taiwan based on artificial neural networks.

BackgroundTaiwan’s geography and limited stock of sandstone have caused sandstone resources to gradually decline to the point of exhaustion after long-term excavation. Moreover, the Taiwanese government has continuously increased the amount of land area near rivers that cannot be excavated to facilitate riverbed remediation and promote conservation of water resources. Accordingly, predicting and managing the annual production of construction aggregates in future construction projects, and dealing appropriately with some thorny problems, for instance, demand that excess supply, excessive excavation, unregulated excavation, and the consequent environmental damage, will significantly affect the efficient use of natural resources in a manner that accords with the national policy of Sustainable Development (SD).MethodsThis study establishes an empirical model for forecasting the annual production of future construction aggregates using Artificial Neural Networks (ANN), based on 15 relevant socio-economic indicators, such as indicator of annual consumption of cement. A sensitivity analysis is then performed on these indicators.Results and DiscussionThis work applies ANN to estimate the annual production of construction aggregates; the estimates, the verification of the model and the sensitivity analysis are all acceptable. Furthermore, sensitivity analysis results indicate that the annual consumption of cement is the indicator that most strongly influences the production of construction aggregates, as well as whether construction waste can be recycled and steel structures can be used in buildings, helping to reduce the future production of construction aggregates in Taiwan.ConclusionsThe elaborate prediction methodology presented in this study avoids some of the weaknesses or limitations of conventional linear statistics, linear programming or system dynamics. Additionally, the results not only provide a short-term prediction of the production of construction aggregates in Taiwan, but also provide a viable and flexible means of verifying quality certification of the production data of construction aggregates in the future by incorporating those relevant socio-economic indicators.Recommendations and OutlookThe continuity and quality of the database of relevant indicators used in this study should be closely scrutinized in order to ensure the SD means of exploiting resources.

A study of the effects of co-branding between low-carbon islands and recreational activities

The development of sustainable tourism on islands is increasingly based on the concept of “low carbon” practices. From a co-branding perspective, this study discusses how to combine recreational activities to create a differentiated tourism landscape, and thus positively influence post-visit tourist reactions when the focal islands emphasize their low-carbon practices. This study used a questionnaire survey to study Taiwans Penghu and Republic of Palau, two islands that have adopted low-carbon policies, and a total of 341 and 298 valid samples were collected, respectively. The findings are the following. (1) Regardless of the island, tourists recognized the low-carbon strategies of both islands, with those of Palau receiving greater attention. (2) The tourists were most familiar with motorized water activities, and the degree of participation in such activities was the highest. However, there were significant differences in degrees of familiarity with and participation in other recreational activities. (3) On both Penghu and Palau, islands and motorized water activities represent the optimal match, and the optimal match percentage of Penghu for all types of recreational activity is 67%. (4) Compared with tourists on Palau, those on Penghu are more willing to recommend a visit to others or revisit the island.

Material flow analysis of cadmium applied to review msw treatment in taiwan

Abstract This study applies the material flow analysis (MFA) of Cadmium to evaluate municipal solid waste (MSW) management policy in Taiwan. In 2002, the Cd flow in Taiwan was approximately 441.2 tons, mainly contributed by the Cd in nickel‐cadmium batteries (60.15%) and plastics (33.45%). 415.6 tons of Cd entered the MSW treatment system from consumers. However, aside from the Cd emitted into the atmosphere (0.4 tons) and the Cd in incinerator ash (15.1 tons), the recycled Cd was 5.2 tons, representing a recycling rate of 1.2%. Moreover, instead of being effectively used, the recycled Cd is often casually deposited in the environment. Currently, Taiwans Cd MFA data indicates that the MSW treatment is mainly performed by incineration, which does not conform to the main principles of sustainable development. To achieve a more sustainable policy, recycling and/or restriction of nickel‐cadmium batteries and plastics turn out to be important issues.

Factors for development of bed and breakfast management in Taiwan

Abstract The Bed & Breakfast industry (B&B) has been over-developed in Taiwan, along with mismanagement of natural resources, thereby damaging environmental and ecological resources in some areas. This study aims to establish assessment indicators for B&B development to be used as a reference in the future. The Delphi method and Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) were used to develop an evaluation hierarchy for managing the Taiwan B&B establishments. Results show that natural environmental conditions and tourism resources are the most important factors for selecting a B&B site. Other important factors, according to the rank of their weights, are: relevant regulations and policies, and the status of public infrastructures. The factors identified have implications for management practice, and for supporting establishing of decision-making tools for the government.

Material flows analysis of construction aggregates in Taiwan

Recent decades of economic and industrial development have accelerated the demand for and use of construction aggregates in Taiwan. Material Flows Analysis (MFA), the most common analysis tool of the scientific field of industrial ecology, was employed in this study. The study calculated, within a decade period, the deposits, domestic production, demand, import, export, per capita and per unit area demand, Total construction Aggregates Requirements (TAR) Intensity of Use (IU) and Efficiency of Use (EU). This paper shows the amount of waste concrete in construction works. From the analysis, we established two system dynamic models: the Supply and Demand Model (SDM) and the Recycle and Filled soil site capacity Model (RFM) to simulate and forecast the use of construction aggregates. The results showed that land aggregates will gradually replace riverbed aggregates as main sources for the construction industry. The capacity of construction wastes will be overloaded in the year 2007. The findings can provide a reliable reference for the Taiwanese government in its decision-making processes concerning the national dematerialisation and waste concrete recycling policy of construction aggregates.

Material flow analysis of pollutants in Taiwan

We present a material flow analysis (MFA) of biological oxygen demand (BOD5) and suspended solids (SS) in estuaries located on the northern and southern coasts of Taiwan. Using data from 1992-2000, we examine human economic activities in each watershed to predict associated pollutant flows. This estimate is compared to data collected at monitoring stations. The ratio allows us to calculate each river systems ability to assimilate and decompose these pollutants, its self-purification capacity. Our results show that over six times as much BOD5 reaches the northern estuary from the urban watershed that in the south. More SS reaches the southern estuary than the north due to more intense land disturbance. Trends for pollutant flows to the northern estuary threaten its capacity to meet sustainability criteria. Trends in the south show a receding threat. We suggest management objectives to enhance prospects for sustaining environmental quality in these two critical regions.