A multi-purpose, sea-cleaning vessel is next month to begin operating in the Port of Keelung to remove liquid and solid waste, the Taiwan International Port Corp (TIAC) said on Friday last week.
The state-run port company said that it spent NT$19.11 million (US$652,775) on the vessel, which was delivered from France in June, to improve its ability to keep the port’s waters clean.
Marine pollution at the port mainly comes from the sewage system, TIAC said.
TIAC dispatches personnel twice a day to scoop up marine waste, with more than 400kg collected on some days, it said.
The new ship is to replace those operations, it said.
With the collection of plastic, hydrocarbons, jellyfish, plants, sewage and other floating waste, the daily processing volume would increase to between 500kg and 800kg, it said.
The vessel has dual-flow technology that allows clean water to be evacuated as water polluted with hydrocarbons is stored, it said.
“Suppose there is an oil spill. The vessel’s cleaning rate of 105m3 per hour would dramatically reduce the use of absorbent cotton and lower the effects on the marine ecosystem,” TIAC chief secretary for the Port of Keelung Chen Shih-hung (陳世鴻) said.
The vessel would also support essential services at the port, including towing, firefighting, dock cleaning, and transporting equipment and personnel, Chen said.
TIAC is testing the vessel’s functions and training personnel to operate it from next month, he said.
TIAC plans to import a second multi-service, sea-cleaning vessel next year to replace ships used by port maintenance personnel, Chen said.
Like garbage trucks, they would broadcast music to warn other vessels that they need to avoid interfering with their operations, Chen added.
Eight Chinese naval vessels and 24 military aircraft were detected crossing the median line of the Taiwan Strait between 6am yesterday and 6am today, the Ministry of National Defense said this morning. The aircraft entered Taiwan’s northern, central, southwestern and eastern air defense identification zones, the ministry said. The armed forces responded with mission aircraft, naval vessels and shore-based missile systems to closely monitor the situation, it added. Eight naval vessels, one official ship and 36 aircraft sorties were spotted in total, the ministry said.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) today said that if South Korea does not reply appropriately to its request to correct Taiwan’s name on its e-Arrival card system before March 31, it would take corresponding measures to alter how South Korea is labeled on the online Taiwan Arrival Card system. South Korea’s e-Arrival card system lists Taiwan as “China (Taiwan)” in the “point of departure” and “next destination” fields. The ministry said that it changed the nationality for South Koreans on Taiwan’s Alien Resident Certificates from “Korea” to “South Korea” on March 1, in a gesture of goodwill and based on the
Taiwanese officials were shown the first of 66 F-16V fighter jets purchased by Taiwan from the United States, the Ministry of National Defense said yesterday, adding the aircraft has completed an initial flight test and is expected to be delivered later this year. A delegation led by Deputy Minister of National Defense Hsu Szu-chien (徐斯儉) visited Lockheed Martin’s F-16 C/D Block 70 (also known as F-16V) assembly line in South Carolina on March 16 to view the aircraft. The jet will undergo a final acceptance flight in the US before being delivered to Taiwan, the
The New Taipei Metro's Sanyin Line and the eastern extension of the Taipei Metro's Tamsui-Xinyi Line (Red Line) are scheduled to begin operations in June, the National Development Council said today. The Red Line, which terminates at Xiangshan Station, would be connected by the 1.4km extension to a new eastern terminal, Guangci/Fengtian Temple Station, while the Sanyin Line would link New Taipei City's Tucheng and Yingge stations via Sanxia District (三峽). The council gave the updates at a council meeting reviewing progress on public construction projects for this year. Taiwan's annual public infrastructure budget would remain at NT$800 billion (US$25.08 billion), with NT$97.3
RSS