Although the Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) has been telling people to flush toilet paper in toilets since 2017, roughly 55 percent of respondents to a survey still dispose of it in trash bins, the EPA said Thursday.
Asked why they continue to dispose of toilet paper in bins instead of flushing it, 44 percent of those responding in that way said they did so due to signage in place in public washrooms telling them not to flush anything in the toilet. Roughly 37 percent said they did so out of concern they would clog the toilet.
Photo: Chang-sheng, Taipei Times
EPA official Shih Sheng-chun (施勝鈞) said that such concerns are unnecessary, as all toilet paper commercially sold in Taiwan is safe to flush, as is indicated on its packaging.
Flushing toilet paper can reduce odor, prevent the growth of bacteria or the spread of infectious diseases, and increase the safety of cleaning staff and other users of public toilets, he said.
However, facial tissue, wet wipes, feminine hygiene products and other items not designed to be flushed should continue to be thrown into trash bins, he said, adding that if an excessive amount of toilet paper is used at once, that should still be thrown into a bin to prevent blockage.
Shih said the EPA would work with businesses operating public washrooms to address their concerns behind leaving signage in place advising against flushing toilet paper.
AGING: While Japan has 22 submarines, Taiwan only operates four, two of which were commissioned by the US in 1945 and 1946, and transferred to Taiwan in 1973 Taiwan would need at least 12 submarines to reach modern fleet capabilities, CSBC Corp, Taiwan chairman Chen Cheng-hung (陳政宏) said in an interview broadcast on Friday, citing a US assessment. CSBC is testing the nation’s first indigenous defense submarine, the Hai Kun (海鯤, Narwhal), which is scheduled to be delivered to the navy next month or in July. The Hai Kun has completed torpedo-firing tests and is scheduled to undergo overnight sea trials, Chen said on an SET TV military affairs program. Taiwan would require at least 12 submarines to establish a modern submarine force after assessing the nation’s operational environment and defense
A white king snake that frightened passengers and caused a stir on a Taipei MRT train on Friday evening has been claimed by its owner, who would be fined, Taipei Rapid Transit Corp (TRTC) said yesterday. A person on Threads posted that he thought he was lucky to find an empty row of seats on Friday after boarding a train on the Bannan (Blue) Line, only to spot a white snake with black stripes after sitting down. Startled, he jumped up, he wrote, describing the encounter as “terrifying.” “Taipei’s rat control plan: Release snakes on the metro,” one person wrote in reply, referring
The coast guard today said that it had disrupted "illegal" operations by a Chinese research ship in waters close to the nation and driven it away, part of what Taipei sees a provocative pattern of China's stepped up maritime activities. The coast guard said that it on Thursday last week detected the Chinese ship Tongji (同濟號), which was commissioned only last year, 29 nautical miles (54km) southeast of the southern tip of Taiwan, although just outside restricted waters. The ship was observed lowering ropes into the water, suspected to be the deployment of scientific instruments for "illegal" survey operations, and the coast
An inauguration ceremony was held yesterday for the Danjiang Bridge, the world’s longest single-mast asymmetric cable-stayed bridge, ahead of its official opening to traffic on Tuesday, marking a major milestone after nearly three decades of planning and construction. At the ceremony in New Taipei City attended by President William Lai (賴清德), Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰), Minister of Transportation and Communications Chen Shih-kai (陳世凱) and New Taipei City Mayor Hou Yu-ih (侯友宜), the bridge was hailed as both an engineering landmark and a long-awaited regional transport link connecting Tamsui (淡水) and Bali (八里)
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