Why doesn Industry use scrubbers like they do in Europe?
Sulphur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide are produced when coal is burnt. Scrubbers only effectively remove sulphur dioxide and not nitrogen dioxide from the waste gases from coal combustion. While sulphur dioxide scrubbers have been installed in the Mt Isa lead smelter and power stations overseas, this approach is effective because the concentration of sulphur dioxide in the flue gases in these locations is much higher than in Gladstone. So, while the amount of sulphur dioxide produced by industry is Gladstone is significant (51,000 tonnes per year), because it is produced over a full year and from a number of locations, the sulphur dioxide is of such a low concentration to make scrubbers ineffective and, according to detailed EPA and GILG modelling, unnecessary.
