Kaohsiung County government yesterday posted a warning sign in Taliao township (大寮) officially banning the use of local groundwater, following the discovery that well water in the area has been contaminated by toxic chemicals.
The move followed a visit to the area by Kaohsiung County Commissioner Yu Cheng-hsien (余政憲), who discovered that local residents were still using groundwater even though the Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) had declared the water to be unsafe.
The EPA on Thursday confirmed it had found traces of trichloroethylene (TCE, 三氯乙烯) in a well in Chaoming village (昭明村).
The villagers were warned months ago by legislators and environmentalists that local ground-water was probably contaminated, after an illegal industrial waste dump was found at nearby Red Shrimp Hill (紅蝦山).
However, village residents defended their use of the well water, saying they did not trust the quality of tap water in the area.
Residents in southern Taiwan have complained about the quality of their drinking water for years. The Kaoping River (
Commissioner Yu said yesterday that he did not believe the public was adhering to the warnings and ordered the well sealed and the pumping machine locked.
According to environmental officials, long-term exposure to TCE can cause skin diseases and damage to the liver, kidney and nervous system. It is also suspected to be a carcinogen.
TCE is widely used in industry as a degreaser for metal parts, especially in the manufacturing of vehicles and machinery.
Though EPA officials suspect the Red Shrimp Hill industrial waste dump site to be the cause of the contamination found in the well, no positive identification of the source has been made yet.
The Red Shirmp Hill site was discovered last August and contains various toxic chemicals in steel barrels, including toluene (
EPA head Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌) will inspect the toxic well and the nearby illegal waste dump tomorrow. He will also inspect the Kaoping River to review water treatment policy.
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft