In addition to fostering better management of reservoirs, a Water Resource Agency (WRA) official said yesterday that it would try to increase water availability in southern regions to battle a recent drought.
WRA Deputy Director Wu Yue-hsi (吳約西) said that in the short term, the agency would increase the supply of backup groundwater per day from 205,000 tonnes to 400,000 tonnes and would also plan to promote sea water desalination and the recycling of wastewater.
The WRA will also encourage people in southern Taiwan to use more water-saving devices and to cultivate water-saving habits, Wu said.
Although the government recently said it would dredge reservoirs in southern Taiwan, the progress will be slow, said Wu, adding that it will take a long time to bring the water supplies in reservoirs back to normal levels.
WRA Director Yang Wei-fu (楊偉甫) said last month that reservoir water levels had fallen alarmingly because of unusually low rainfall and silt buildup.
Water consumption in Taiwan averages 274 liters per head per day, equivalent to emptying Sun Moon Lake every 20 days, said Yang, adding that serious water shortages could occur very soon.
The agency said it hoped to decrease personal daily water consumption to about 250 liters.
WRA studies have shown that 27 percent of household water is used to flush toilets; 21 percent to do laundry; 20 percent for showers; 15 percent for cooking, drinking and cleaning; and 17 percent for other purposes.
To fight the drought, the Kaohsiung City Government last week said it would drill new wells along the Gaoping River (高屏溪).
Kaohsiung Deputy Mayor Lin Jen-yi (林仁益) said the project would double the water supply from the wells in the area to 400,000m³ per day.
Typhoon Morakot deposited huge quantities of sand and mud in southern Taiwan’s reservoirs in August, while scant rainfall also affected the water supply situation.
The Executive Yuan announced last month that it had earmarked NT$34 billion (US$1.05 billion) to dredge the country’s two largest reservoirs — Zengwun (曾文) and Nanhua (南化) in southern Taiwan — over the next six to seven years.
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) today issued a "tsunami watch" alert after a magnitude 8.7 earthquake struck off the Kamchatka Peninsula in northeastern Russia earlier in the morning. The quake struck off the east coast of the Kamchatka Peninsula at 7:25am (Taiwan time) at a depth of about 19km, the CWA said, citing figures from the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center. The CWA's Seismological Center said preliminary assessments indicate that a tsunami could reach Taiwan's coastal areas by 1:18pm today. The CWA urged residents along the coast to stay alert and take necessary precautions as waves as high as 1m could hit the southeastern
FINAL COUNTDOWN: About 50,000 attended a pro-recall rally yesterday, while the KMT and the TPP plan to rally against the recall votes today Democracy activists, together with arts and education representatives, yesterday organized a motorcade, while thousands gathered on Ketagalan Boulevard in Taipei in the evening in support of tomorrow’s recall votes. Recall votes for 24 Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers and suspended Hsinchu City mayor Ann Kao (高虹安) are to be held tomorrow, while recall votes for seven other KMT lawmakers are scheduled for Aug. 23. The afternoon motorcade was led by the Spring Breeze Culture and Arts Foundation, the Tyzen Hsiao Foundation and the Friends of Lee Teng-hui Association, and was joined by delegates from the Taiwan Statebuilding Party and the Taiwan Solidarity
Instead of threatening tariffs on Taiwan-made chips, the US should try to reinforce cooperation with Taiwan on semiconductor development to take on challenges from the People’s Republic of China (PRC), a Taiwanese think tank said. The administration of US President Donald Trump has threatened to impose across-the-board import duties of 32 percent on Taiwan-made goods and levy a separate tariff on semiconductors, which Taiwan is hoping to avoid. The Research Institute for Democracy, Society, and Emerging Technology (DSET), a National Science and Technology Council think tank, said that US efforts should focus on containing China’s semiconductor rise rather than impairing Taiwan. “Without
The National Museum of Taiwan Literature is next month to hold an exhibition in Osaka, Japan, showcasing the rich and unique history of Taiwanese folklore and literature. The exhibition, which is to run from Aug. 10 to Aug. 20 at the city’s Central Public Hall, is part of the “We Taiwan” at Expo 2025 series, highlighting Taiwan’s cultural ties with the international community, National Museum of Taiwan Literature director Chen Ying-fang (陳瑩芳) said. Folklore and literature, among Taiwan’s richest cultural heritages, naturally deserve a central place in the global dialogue, Chen said. Taiwan’s folklore would be immediately apparent at the entrance of the
RSS