Taiwan Quick Take: EPA cleaning up Erjen River

The Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) has begun cleaning up the Erjen River in Kaohsiung County -- a highly polluted river that has turned into a synonym for environmental pollution in Taiwan, an EPA spokesman said yesterday. According to the spokesman, the EPA has granted Kaohsiung County a budget of NT$63 million to carry out the task of cleaning up the river, which has long been polluted by toxic chemicals released by waste circuit boards illegally dumped in the river by factories. The recently begun cleanup operation aims to clear some 4,900 tonnes of waste circuit boards and rehabilitate the river by the end of October, the spokesman said. Some of the circuit boards to be dug out from the river will be recycled and provided to the public for "art creation," he said, adding that a contest would be sponsored to select creative works made from recycled circuit boards. The winning artworks would be displayed at an exhibition sponsored by the county's Environmental Protection Bureau, he said.