Custom Taxonomies – Possible to Use Separator Other Than Comma?

When creating a new custom taxonomy (non-hierarchical), is it possible to specify a separator other than commas to be used? I am working on a new custom taxonomy that relies heavily on the ability to use commas inside, but it doesn’t make much sense to make it hierarchical (well, it makes perfect sense to make it hierarchical, but since the large amount of existing data is not normalized in any way, it would be way more trouble than it’s worth to try to turn it into hierarchical data).

Therefore, I would prefer to find a way to specify a character other than commas (semi-colons, maybe) that could be used to separate the taxonomy items when they are entered into the box.

Is this possible at all? Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks.