The Taichung City Government and the Ministry of Economic Affairs’ Water Resources Agency are to hold a joint water shortage drill tomorrow, as it aims to prepare city residents to deal with possible water shortages.
The decline in water levels nationwide due to a lack of rainfall has led to increasingly dire water shortage situations across the nation, prompting Taichung’s response.
The drill would focus on establishing temporary water stations and systems that would guarantee that hospitals have emergency access to water, as well as filtering water sourced from construction sites, the city government said.
Photo: Chang Hsuan–che, Taipei Times
Taichung Mayor Lu Shiow-yen (盧秀燕) said the city government would work with local industries that use a lot of water to scale down use, while opening 72 underground water sources at construction sites.
Starting on Feb. 1, industrial water use has been reduced, while companies that continue to use a lot of water have been subject to weekly monitoring to clamp down and conserve water, the city government said.
The city government also announced that 20 swimming pools across the city would be temporarily closed, adding that it is also making available water at six water recycling centers for cooking and general-purpose cleaning.
The Water Resources Agency has provided a mobile water filtration device that would help filter water from industrial plants for public use, Lu said, adding that the device should be operational next month and is to provide about 500 tonnes of clean water daily.
The city government would also place reverse osmosis water filtration devices at construction sites by the end of the month, Lu said, adding that each device is expected to provide 15 tonnes of potable water per day.
The city government urged residents to observe water-use guidelines and to use potable or tap water for cooking and drinking, and reclaimed water for general-purpose cleaning.
A preclearance service to facilitate entry for people traveling to select airports in Japan would be available from Thursday next week to Feb. 25 at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, Taoyuan International Airport Corp (TIAC) said on Tuesday. The service was first made available to Taiwanese travelers throughout the winter vacation of 2024 and during the Lunar New Year holiday. In addition to flights to the Japanese cities of Hakodate, Asahikawa, Akita, Sendai, Niigata, Okayama, Takamatsu, Kumamoto and Kagoshima, the service would be available to travelers to Kobe and Oita. The service can be accessed by passengers of 15 flight routes operated by
Chinese spouse and influencer Guan Guan’s (關關) residency permit has been revoked for repeatedly posting pro-China videos that threaten national security, the National Immigration Agency confirmed today. Guan Guan has said many controversial statements in her videos posted to Douyin (抖音), including “the red flag will soon be painted all over Taiwan” and “Taiwan is an inseparable part of China,” and expressing hope for expedited reunification. The agency last year received multiple reports alleging that Guan Guan had advocated for armed reunification. After verifying the reports, the agency last month issued a notice requiring her to appear and explain her actions. Guan
GIVE AND TAKE: Blood demand continues to rise each year, while fewer young donors are available due to the nation’s falling birthrate, a doctor said Blood donors can redeem points earned from donations to obtain limited edition Formosan black bear travel mugs, the Kaohsiung Blood Center said yesterday, as it announced a goal of stocking 20,000 units of blood prior to the Lunar New Year. The last month of the lunar year is National Blood Donation Month, when local centers seek to stockpile blood for use during the Lunar New Year holiday. The blood demand in southern Taiwan — including Tainan and Kaohsiung, as well as Chiayi, Pingtung, Penghu and Taitung counties — is about 2,000 units per day, the center said. The donation campaign aims to boost
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) said a magnitude 4.9 earthquake that struck off the coast of eastern Taiwan yesterday was an independent event and part of a stress-adjustment process. The earthquake occurred at 4:47pm, with its epicenter at sea about 45.4km south of Yilan County Hall at a depth of 5.9km, the CWA said. The quake's intensity, which gauges the actual effects of a temblor, was highest in several townships in Yilan and neighboring Hualien County, where it measured 4 on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the CWA said. Lin Po-yu (林柏佑), a division chief at the CWA's Seismological Center, told a news conference
RSS