Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday urged the central government to speed up flood-defense work along the Neikou River, a tributary of the Keelung River, before the typhoon season starts.
With tropical storm Kujira heading for the coast, Ma said it is imperative that work start immediately on embankments along the middle and lower sections of the river, the points most at risk from weather damage.
"The embankment construction on the lower section of the river, undertaken by the Taipei City Government, is due to be completed by July," Ma said.
"However, work on the embankment in the middle section of the river, the part the central government is responsible for, hasn't started yet.
"That could lead to problems for the whole flood-prevention system and residents living nearby in the Tunghu and Neihu areas could be endangered," he said.
Ma also corrected a remark made by Premier Yu Shyi-kun on Monday asking the city government to look for cash for construction of the middle section.
"The central government is responsible for the project in the middle section of the river, which is at the border of both Taipei City and Taipei County," Ma said.
"The city government can't simply start the construction by itself, as the construction is a cross-city affair and should be managed by the central government," he said.
Yu said funding could only be taken from surpluses of Keelung River construction budgets, adding that the city should start flood-prevention work first.
"The premier made a mistake over the funding targets," Ma said. "Funds from the budget surpluses should be allocated for the lower section of the river, not the middle.
"The city cannot start work on construction in the middle section of the river as switching land use between Taipei City and Taipei County requires the central government to step in for coordination," Ma said.
The legislature last year passed the budget for the Keelung River flood-defense project, which stipulated that the two administrations would be responsible for different sections of the river.
Meanwhile, Water Resources Agency Deputy Director Chen Shen-hsien (陳伸賢) yesterday said the assessment plan for the middle section of the Neikou River will be completed by this month, adding that construction is expected to be completed by next summer.
Chen said the ministry has appropriated NT$5 million to Taipei City to undertake a dredging pro-ject in the middle section of the Neikou River and demanded that this be completed before the typhoon season in July and August.
Director of Taipei City's Bureau of Public Works William Chen (
"The city cannot pile sandbags along this part of the river, but we would warn residents near the river bank to evacuate should the water reach a dangerous level," Chen said.
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