The construction of the Hushan Reservoir (湖山水庫) in Yunlin County is scheduled to be completed in 2014 after environmental issues have been resolved, the Water Resources Agency said yesterday.
The reservoir, designed for joint operation with the Jiji Diversion Weir (集集攔河堰) on Jhuoshuei River (濁水溪), will be able to supply 694,000 tonnes of water per day for public, industrial and household use in the Yunlin region, the agency said.
The project will improve the quantity and quality of domestic water supply in the region, it said.
At present, residents of the area rely heavily on groundwater, it said, adding that the Hushan reservoir project would help prevent land subsidence resulting from groundwater extraction.
To ensure on-time completion of the project, the agency said a framework has to be established to ensure the participation of local communities and the introduction of environmental conservation measures. The government has allocated a special fund of NT$200 million (US$6.2 million) for this purpose, it added.
The agency said it had assembled a team of conservationists that, together with Council of Agriculture officials, would conduct studies on forest and river ecology systems in the areas near the reservoir.
For its part, the agency said it would focus on plant and animal conservation, the creation of new habitats and raising environmental awareness.
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