Officials are to attempt to create artificial rain over Tainan’s three reservoirs tomorrow as the region faces a potential water shortage, a Water Resource Agency official said yesterday.
As water levels at the Zengwen (曾文), Nanhua (南化) and Wushantou (烏山頭) reservoirs continue to drop, members of the public have expressed concern that the agency could start first-phase water rationing, in which water pressure is reduced during the night.
As of yesterday, the Zengwen Reservoir was at 11.55 percent of its maximum capacity, with its water level down to 193.3m, while the Nanhua Reservoir — the main source of residential water supply in the city — had only 38.76 percent left, with a water level of 166.42m, the agency said.
Photo: Wu Chun-feng, Taipei Times
The agency’s Southern Region Water Resources Office is fully prepared to commence rainmaking from atop the dams of the three reservoirs starting at 5am on Sunday, as a cold front is expected to arrive tonight, office deputy director Chien Chen-yuan (簡振源) said yesterday.
Two precipitation agents are to be set off at the three reservoirs, and the amount is to be adjusted with changes in weather conditions, he said.
Water supply in the region this month is the 11th-lowest measured in April, Chien said, adding that the agency began negotiating water use ahead of schedule in September last year.
For example, it asked the Chia-nan Irrigation Association to increase the efficiency of irrigation systems in Tainan and Chiayi County, and the association has saved more than 90 million cubic meters of water, he said.
The office has reserved water for residential and agricultural uses, and is keeping an eye on the storage capacity of the three reservoirs, he said, adding that it has also been working to dredge more sediment from the reservoirs.
The public need not worry about water shortages, but is advised to save water whenever possible, he said.
Since August last year, the agency has drawn 6 million tonnes of water from Kaohsiung to help satisfy Tainan’s water demand.
Kaohsiung’s water mainly comes from the Gaoping River (高屏溪), the flow of which is still sufficient for use by local residents, Chien said, adding that the Central Weather Bureau has forecast rain in the city.
Until the plum rain season, the office would warn of any changes in water storage, along with local irrigation associations, state-run Taiwan Water Corp (台水) and other government agencies that govern industrial use of water, it said.
Additional reporting by Hung Chen-hung and Tsai Ching-hua
Nipah virus infection is to be officially listed as a category 5 notifiable infectious disease in Taiwan in March, while clinical treatment guidelines are being formulated, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday. With Nipah infections being reported in other countries and considering its relatively high fatality rate, the centers on Jan. 16 announced that it would be listed as a notifiable infectious disease to bolster the nation’s systematic early warning system and increase public awareness, the CDC said. Bangladesh reported four fatal cases last year in separate districts, with three linked to raw date palm sap consumption, CDC Epidemic Intelligence
The manufacture of the remaining 28 M1A2T Abrams tanks Taiwan purchased from the US has recently been completed, and they are expected to be delivered within the next one to two months, a source said yesterday. The Ministry of National Defense is arranging cargo ships to transport the tanks to Taiwan as soon as possible, said the source, who is familiar with the matter. The estimated arrival time ranges from late this month to early next month, the source said. The 28 Abrams tanks make up the third and final batch of a total of 108 tanks, valued at about NT$40.5 billion
Two Taiwanese prosecutors were questioned by Chinese security personnel at their hotel during a trip to China’s Henan Province this month, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. The officers had personal information on the prosecutors, including “when they were assigned to their posts, their work locations and job titles,” MAC Deputy Minister and spokesman Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) said. On top of asking about their agencies and positions, the officers also questioned the prosecutors about the Cross-Strait Joint Crime-Fighting and Judicial Mutual Assistance Agreement, a pact that serves as the framework for Taiwan-China cooperation on combating crime and providing judicial assistance, Liang
A group from the Taiwanese Designers in Australia association yesterday represented Taiwan at the Midsumma Pride March in Melbourne. The march, held in the St. Kilda suburb, is the city’s largest LGBTQIA+ parade and the flagship event of the annual Midsumma Festival. It attracted more than 45,000 spectators who supported the 400 groups and 10,000 marchers that participated this year, the association said. Taiwanese Designers said they organized a team to march for Taiwan this year, joining politicians, government agencies, professionals and community organizations in showing support for LGBTQIA+ people and diverse communities. As the first country in Asia to legalize same-sex
RSS