Taipei City Councilor Chuang Jui-hsiung (莊瑞雄) said yesterday that because of a delayed response by the Taipei City Government, people who fished in one of the city’s creeks may have eaten fish that were contaminated with pesticides.
“Earlier this month, thousands of fish went belly-up in the Shuangxi (雙溪), but nobody knew why … After investigations, the city’s Department of Health found that it was because large amounts of extremely toxic pesticides had washed into the river,” Chuang said.
Chuang lambasted the city government for not immediately warning people that the water in a popular fishing spot had been contaminated.
On July 5, about 300kg of dead fish were found floating in the Shilin District creek.
“On July 4, there was a fire at a Shuangxi Park administration warehouse, which is located at the riverbank. The warehouse contained a three-to-six-month supply of pesticides,” he said.
Chuang said that when the fire occurred, the park administration failed to inform firefighters of the content of the warehouse. As a result, a lot of the substances washed into the river when they were putting the blaze out.
“My voters came and told me that the river smelled very foul, but they didn’t know what caused the smell,” he said.
In response, deputy director of the Shuangxi Park Administration Hsu Tien-chou (?w) said that toxin levels in the pesticides would have been reduced by the fire.
However, city Department of Health specialist Hu Shu-fang (胡淑芳) said that before the reason for the fish deaths was confirmed, people were advised against eating fish caught from the river.
Liao Chia-lung (廖家龍), section chief of the city’s Water Conservation Agency, said the city would set up announcement boards along the riverbank to inform park visitors of the incident.
“We will tell fishers that while it is alright to fish, the fish are not suitable for consumption,” Liao said.
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
Taiwan-Japan Travel Passes are available for use on public transit networks in the two countries, Taoyuan Metro Corp said yesterday, adding that discounts of up to 7 percent are available. Taoyuan Metro, the Taipei MRT and Japan’s Keisei Electric Railway teamed up to develop the pass. Taoyuan Metro operates the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport MRT Line, while Keisei Electric Railway offers express services between Tokyo’s Narita Airport, and the Keisei Ueno and Nippori stations in the Japanese capital, as well as between Narita and Haneda airports. The basic package comprises one one-way ticket on the Taoyuan MRT Line and one Skyliner ticket on
Many Japanese couples are coming to Taiwan to obtain donated sperm or eggs for fertility treatment due to conservatism in their home country, Taiwan’s high standards and low costs, doctors said. One in every six couples in Japan is receiving infertility treatment, Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare data show. About 70,000 children are born in Japan every year through in vitro fertilization (IVF), or about one in every 11 children born. Few people accept donated reproductive cells in Japan due to a lack of clear regulations, leaving treatment in a “gray zone,” Taichung Nuwa Fertility Center medical director Wang Huai-ling (王懷麟)
PROXIMITY: Prague is closer to Dresden than Berlin is, so Taiwanese firms are expected to take advantage of the Czech capital’s location, the Executive Yuan official said Taiwan plans to boost cooperation with the Czech Republic in semiconductor development due to Prague’s pivotal role in the European IC industry, Executive Yuan Secretary-General Kung Ming-hsin (龔明鑫) said. With Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) building a wafer fab in the German city of Dresden, a Germany-Czech Republic-Poland “silicon triangle” is forming, Kung said in a media interview on the weekend after returning from a visit to Prague. “Prague is closer to Dresden than Berlin is, so Taiwanese firms are expected to take advantage of the Czech capital’s location,” he said. “Taiwan and Prague have already launched direct flights and it is
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