Officials at the Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) yesterday told southern Taiwan to get cleaning before Lunar New Year to prevent the spread of dengue fever.
The EPA announced yesterday that an annual project dubbed "National Cleanup Week" will begin on Jan. 24 and run until Jan. 30.
Families traditionally carry out spring cleaning and replace old furniture and other items at Lunar New Year to welcome change and ward off bad luck. This year, the first day of the Lunar New Year falls on Feb. 1.
EPA officials stressed that residents in the three southern jurisdictions of Kaohsiung City, Kaohsiung County and Pingtung County should focus on drying out pools of stagnant water -- a breeding ground for disease-carrying mosquitoes.
"Although reported dengue fever cases have dropped recently, we should remain alert because the larvae will not die immediately," Ho Soon-ching (何舜琴), deputy director general of the EPA's Bureau of Sanitation and Toxic Chemicals Control, said at a press conference yesterday.
As of yesterday, the Center for Disease Control had reported 5,276 confirmed cases of dengue fever, a mosquito-borne viral disease. Among them were 219 cases of dengue hemorrhagic fever, a potentially fatal complication.
Ho said that efforts to remove breeding sites for mosquitoes will continue during the holidays. For example, Ho said, disinfecting empty buildings and unoccupied apartments in southern jurisdictions remained one of main tasks of the cleanup project.
"The last thing we want to see is the spread of dengue fever again in March when the temperature rises again," he said.
Ho said that local environmental officials would carry out stricter environmental inspections during the cleanup week.
All residents are encouraged to clean the area within 4m of their home. Ho said that residents who fail to clean their immediate environment would pay a fine ranging from NT$1,200 to NT$6,000.
Deputy Kaohsiung Mayor Lin Yun-chien (
EPA officials said yesterday that the bureau would not stop collecting recyclable material until Jan. 31.
In Kaohsiung County, there have been no fresh reports of dengue fever cases since last week.
Environmental officials of Kaohsiung County Government, however, said they will continue to remove potential breeding grounds for mosquitoes.
EPA officials urged residents to separate their waste and recycle reusable materials, such as paper, iron cans, PET bottles, glass bottles, fluorescent tubes and electronic appliances.
Anticipating large piles of household garbage that swamp Taipei's streets after spring cleaning, the EPA stressed that leaving furniture, TV sets, refrigerators and other large items on the streets is prohibited.
"Residents should contact local garbage-collection offices to make appointments for the removal of large items," Ho said.
Officials said that in most jurisdictions, including Taipei City, garbage collecting services will be unavailable from Feb. 1 to Feb 3.
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