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Alliance reveals pollution in Taichung park
The China Post news staff--A private alliance designed to supervise the administration of the Taichung City Government yesterday filed an accusation with the Control Yuan, the government's highest watchdog, against the city government's failure to publicize the fact that part of the proposed Shuinan Economic and Trade Park has been seriously polluted by heavy metals.
The Greater Taichung City Government Administration Supervision Alliance petitioned the Control Yuan to investigate the alleged abuse of administrative power by the Taichung City Government, saying that the city administration team has purposely concealed the pollution situation, causing people to be at risk of exposure to toxic substances.
An alliance spokesman said that the planned Shuinan Economic and Trade Park, spanning 247 hectares and requiring a total investment cost of up to NT$500 billion, is one of the major development projects already underway in Taichung. But there are some 7,648 square meters polluted by such heavy metals as copper, lead, cadmium, and chromium, as well as insulating oil for use in power transformer boxes.
The spokesman told the Control Yuan that the Cabinet-level Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) found in 2010 that both the earth and groundwater of sections of the Shuinan Park were polluted, but the Taichung City Government hasn't taken actions to deal with the pollution or make public the finding. “Such a dereliction of duty on the part of the city government may cause some city residents use polluted groundwater that may cause cancer,” the spokesman said.
The spokesman continued that even city councilors were not aware of the pollution problem before they approved the budget appropriated by the city government to develop the Shuinan Park.
In June this year, the spokesman noted, Taichung City Mayor Jason Hu openly said that he had no idea about the pollution problem found in the planned Shuinan Park. “This indicated that Hu was openly telling lies or the city government's administration was already out of order,” the spokesman stressed.
In response to the accusation, Deputy Mayor Hsiao Jia-chi said that the city government had convened a meeting with relevant units to seek countermeasures immediately after learning of the pollution problem, instead of concealing the problem.
Hsiao said that as the polluted area accounts for less than 1 percent of the total area of the planned park, the development of the park shouldn't be affected.
source: China Post
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