A group of protesters demonstrated in front of the Presidential Office yesterday to urge the government to clean up the toxic heavy metal and dioxin dust polluting the river mouth of their beloved Dadu River (大肚溪), which flows between Taichung and Changhua Counties.
They sprinkled toxic dirt gathered from the polluted area on a Mother’s Day “cake” that had a stuffed dolphin on it, symbolizing the endangered Indo-Pacific humpback dolphins which can be found near the Changhua County coastline.
“We love the Dadu River. We don’t want dioxin,” they shouted as they carried the cake to the gates of the Presidential Office.
Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei Times
They said they wanted to present the cake, which was made out of slag and furnace dust, along with their petition to President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九).
The protesters appealed for the withdrawal of a proposal to construct a Dadu River dam and called for efforts to clean up the toxic heavy metal and dioxin waste at the river mouth and nearby farmland.
Huang Huan-chang (黃煥彰), an associate professor at Chunghua University of Medical Technology’s department of nursing, said early last month that the level of dioxin in the soil at the river mouth was 2.5 times the normal standard.
After on-site inspection with Changhua Environmental Protection Union president Shy Yueh-Ing (施月英) and officials from Changhua County’s Environmental Protection Department in March, and further inspections with related agencies last month, the Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) confirmed on April 7 that the intertidal zone, as well as the Dadu River Estuary Wildlife Refuge, have toxic waste levels above the hazardous industrial waste standard.
The EPA said it would instruct the related agencies to deal with the problem in accordance with the Waste Disposal Act (廢棄物清理法).
“The government should take immediate measures to clean up the toxic waste now. It just shouldn’t prohibit vehicles from going to the reported area and leave it as it is.” Shy said, adding that the polluted area is about 9 hectares.
“We know it will take a long time to clean up all the toxic waste, but we ask for the government to first deal with the areas reached by the tides reach so that the pollution doesn’t spread further,” said Tainan Community University’s Wu Jen-pang (吳仁邦), who returned to the polluted site in the afternoon after attending the protest in the morning.
“Dioxin is said to be the deadliest pollutant and be harmful to humans who eat fish that have been poisoned, and I can see people fishing right now in the polluted area.” he said, adding that the county government had put up a sign telling people not to go into the polluted area, but did not warn about how harmful it could be.
Tsai Hung-teh (蔡鴻德), executive secretary of the EPA’s Soil and Groundwater Remediation Fund Management Board, said the administration had asked Water Resources Agency’s (WRA) Third River Management Office to submit a waste disposal plan to Changhua County before July 1.
Saying the situation need thorough research, investigation, as well as a budget estimate, before action could be taken, Tsai added that the agency has conducted research on farms near the polluted area and put up “No Fishing” signs.
When asked whether there is a time-table to tackle the issue, Tsai said the EPA would urge the relevant agencies to deal with the pollutants as soon as possible once a plan is approved.
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
A wild live dugong was found in Taiwan for the first time in 88 years, after it was accidentally caught by a fisher’s net on Tuesday in Yilan County’s Fenniaolin (粉鳥林). This is the first sighting of the species in Taiwan since 1937, having already been considered “extinct” in the country and considered as “vulnerable” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. A fisher surnamed Chen (陳) went to Fenniaolin to collect the fish in his netting, but instead caught a 3m long, 500kg dugong. The fisher released the animal back into the wild, not realizing it was an endangered species at
The High Prosecutors’ Office yesterday withdrew an appeal against the acquittal of a former bank manager 22 years after his death, marking Taiwan’s first instance of prosecutors rendering posthumous justice to a wrongfully convicted defendant. Chu Ching-en (諸慶恩) — formerly a manager at the Taipei branch of BNP Paribas — was in 1999 accused by Weng Mao-chung (翁茂鍾), then-president of Chia Her Industrial Co, of forging a request for a fixed deposit of US$10 million by I-Hwa Industrial Co, a subsidiary of Chia Her, which was used as collateral. Chu was ruled not guilty in the first trial, but was found guilty
DEADLOCK: As the commission is unable to forum a quorum to review license renewal applications, the channel operators are not at fault and can air past their license date The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday said that the Public Television Service (PTS) and 36 other television and radio broadcasters could continue airing, despite the commission’s inability to meet a quorum to review their license renewal applications. The licenses of PTS and the other channels are set to expire between this month and June. The National Communications Commission Organization Act (國家通訊傳播委員會組織法) stipulates that the commission must meet the mandated quorum of four to hold a valid meeting. The seven-member commission currently has only three commissioners. “We have informed the channel operators of the progress we have made in reviewing their license renewal applications, and
RSS