Kaohsiung Councilor Awarded for Reporting Pollution Incidents|鳳山溪揪"汙"! 高市議員捐檢舉獎金

The Fengshan creek in Kaohsiung City has long been plagued by severe pollution. In the last three weeks, local councilor spotted white substance in the creek and has reported the issue to the city's Environmental Protection Bureau. Upon investigation, the bureau found that two local food processing companies have been pouring unprocessed wastewater in the creek. The companies have been fined NT$ 6,000 each, and the councilor was awarded for reporting environmental issues.


The water in the creek is white.

Around dawn, Kaohsiung City Councilor Li Ya-ching spotted and recorded what appears to be white liquid flowing in the Fengshan Creek in Kaohsiung City. She reported the issue to the Kaohsiung City Environmental Protection Bureau and kept sample of the liquid. The bureau trace the liquid and found that a food processing company had been pouring unprocessed wastewater into the creek.

The wastewater was the result of processing noodles and flour products. It's a combination of the cleaning product used for utensils and flour residue. It's been poured into the upstream of the creek.

The food processing company is legally registered. However, its wastewater processing equipment is too simplistic, and its emission has not reached the official standards. The Environmental Protection Bureau has fined the company NT$6,000 according to law. The city councilor has reported multiple cases of water pollution in the Fengshan creek, and the issue has worsened in recent weeks. The councilor was awarded NT$ 1,200 for the two incidents she reported, making her the first Kaohsiung City councilor to receive an award.

Maybe it's the dry season, the water downstream has turned black and stinky. However, the color and the smell have been present for too long, even after the irrigation season has started.

The councilor said that she will donate the award to public welfare groups. But she also said that the pollution in the Fengshan creek has not seen clear improvement in the last 20 years. She hopes that the environmental protection bureau could thoroughly investigate the waste emission of medium-to-small sized factories and help them improve if necessary.