New Environmental Protection Admin-istration (EPA) head Hau Lung-bin (
Having taken over the leadership of the EPA on Wednesday, Hau inspected the Lungkeng Ecological Conservation Preservation Area (
The EPA's slow response to the spill and other administrative problems relating to the handling of the spill were among the factors that led to this week's Cabinet reshuffle , and forced former EPA head Lin Jun-yi (林俊義) to step down.
PHOTO: HUNG CHEN-SHENG, TAIPEI TIMES
Hau's inspection trip, on only his second day in office, was designed to show the EPA's resolve to handle the remaining cleanup work efficiently. Hau observed damaged parts of the preservation area but, due to bad weather, was not able to inspect the wreck yesterday.
Hau, however, said that he hoped the most challenging aspect of the clean-up -- removing 200 tonnes of oil and 60,000 tonnes of iron ore which remain on the ship -- would be solved as soon as possible.
"The ship's agent should dismantle the wreck and remove the oil and iron ore as soon as possible, weather permitting," Hau said.
But he said he was far from satisfied with the measures taken so far by the agent to pump oil from the ship.
On March 1, the EPA began levying a fine of NT$1.5 million per day on the ship's agent. Officials said the fine would not be lifted until the agent took preventative measures against any further leakage.
To avoid being fined, the ship's agent has hired local workers to remove the oil from the wreck. However, the workers, who risk their lives to perform the task, are only able to remove 600 liters of oil per day.
Hau said that the measures taken by the agent were insufficient.
"Under the circumstances, we will still continue to fine the agent until it takes effective measures to prevent further pollution," Hau said.
According to the Ministry of Transportation and Communication (MOTC), the ship's agent will present a proposal on how to deal with the wreck by the end of March.
Hau added that the government would consider getting involved to expedite the pumping of oil from the ship if necessary.
"But the government will ask for a fee from the agent," Hau said.
As for the shore cleanup work, Cheng Shean-rong (
"Since such oily seawater has to be filtered before being pumped up, the work has progressed slowly," Cheng said.
It is estimated that about 1,150 tonnes of oil spilled from the ship. Most of it was collected in the initial stage, which was completed by soldiers in mid-February.
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