Farglory Group (遠雄建設) is to be fined NT$170,000 for clogging the sewage system around the Taipei Dome construction site, Taipei’s Department of Environmental Protection said yesterday.
The department said it had found mud from 20cm to 30cm deep along 800m of drainage culvert next to the Taipei Dome, attributing the pollution to Dome construction because it is the only large-scale construction project in the area.
While contractors are required to wash soil off large vehicles exiting construction sites, such runoff typically settles without entering the sewer system, the department said.
The clogging appeared to be the result of an increased pace of construction over the past three months, it added.
A city-ordered partial halt to Dome construction last month was rumored to be sparked by Farglory deliberately stalling construction on the site’s foundation, while accelerating construction of other portions of the project.
Following reports of damage to the neighboring historic Songshan Tobacco Factory that was said to be related to Dome construction, the city initially delayed halting construction amid safety concerns over the unfinished foundations.
The Department of Environmental Protection said that the clogged culvert would pose a danger of flooding.
Because Farglory failed to clean up the problem after a NT$70,000 fine was levied last week, a new NT$100,000 fine follows, with additional NT$100,000 fines to be levied each week that the culvert remains plugged, the department said.
The municipal government has been locked in conflict with Farglory over Dome contract terms since January, with a municipal safety commission in April recommending that either the Dome or a neighboring shopping mall be demolished.
Taipei Deputy Mayor Charles Lin (林欽榮) said that the municipal government planned to hold a conference on Dome safety on Saturday, inviting Farglory chairman Chao Teng-hsiung (趙藤雄) and officials from the Ministry of the Interior’s Construction and Planning Agency to participate.
Ko has said that a decision on the future of the Taipei Dome site would be made only after a series of public hearings, with Monday next week set as the deadline for Farglory to make adjustments in response to municipal safety concerns.
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