Six-gallon (22.7 liter) containers of drinking water may be made from discarded blood-transfusion containers from China, a TSU lawmaker warned yesterday.
TSU Legislator Chien Lin Whei-jun (
"It is possible that these water containers have been smuggled in from China," Chien Lin said.
PHOTO: CHIANG YING-YING, TAIPEI TIMES
According to Chien, the Chinese authorities had clamped down on the manufacture of such containers two years ago when it discovered that some businesspeople had produced PET water containers from discarded blood-transfusion bottles, CD-ROMs and other plastic items that contained a chemical substance called glycol.
"Glycol is harmful and poisonous to the human body when ingested in high concentrations," Chien said. "It can damage our lungs, liver, blood and nervous system and cause cancer.
"These water containers have been banned by the Chinese authorities yet have shown up in Taiwan," Chien said.
Chien held up an example of the dangerous containers, which she said was purchased in southern Taiwan by one of her supporters.
Chien said that consumers can distinguish between safe and unsafe containers by their appearance and sound.
"Safe water containers appear smooth, transparent and spotless while inferior containers appear darker, less transparent and have tiny black spots on the surface," she said.
"And when you knock on it, the safe one sounds dull while the poor containers produce a deeper sound," Chien said, adding that the safe containers are less fragile and have a manufacturer's label printed on the bottom.
According to Wen Chang-an (
Although it is not yet certain that these poor quality water containers are from China, Chien asked government agencies to strengthen their inspection of plastic containers in a bid to safeguard public health.
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