The Ministry of Environment today unveiled a new toilet-themed art installation as part of efforts to promote seated toilets and encourage people to flush toilet paper.
The ministry introduced the installation created in cooperation with the Friends of Daan Forest Park Foundation at an event in its main lobby.
The display features transparent toilet bowls to promote flushing toilet paper, as well as seated toilets over squat toilets for better hygiene and accessibility.
Photo: Wu Po-hsuan, Taipei Times
Squat toilets currently account for nearly half of all 45,000 public restrooms overseen by the ministry, although it hopes to raise the proportion of seated toilets to 80 percent within the next few years, Minister of Environment Peng Chi-ming (彭啟明) said.
The rollout would begin with government agencies, although no date has been set to entirely replace squat toilets, he added.
The ministry hopes to improve and modernize public restrooms, often described as “wet, dirty and smelly,” Peng said.
Squat toilets have a bacterial count hundreds of times higher than seated ones, he said, adding that the ministry has instructed restroom management units to provide alcohol wipes or disposable seat covers to ensure cleanliness.
Squat toilets do not exist in Western countries, leaving many US and European tourists “shocked” to find them in Taiwan, foundation managing director Tsai Chien-sheng (蔡建生) said.
Neighboring countries such as Japan and Singapore have also set goals to reduce the number of squat toilets, he added.
Meanwhile, the ministry said it has conducted testing with 26 different brands of toilet paper, showing that they are completely flushable.
However, it advised not to flush facial tissues.
Many business owners worry that toilet paper clogs pipes in old plumbing systems, although urine scale buildup or debris is usually to blame, both of which are easily resolved through professional cleaning services, Peng said.
Taiwan is one of the few countries in the world that still promotes throwing used toilet paper into trash cans rather than flushing it, which can lead to bacterial growth and negatively affect Taiwan’s tourism image and international reputation, Tsai added.
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