The execution period of this project is from May 18, 2017 to May 17, 2018. All contract goals of work items have been accomplished and the first drafts of midterm report and term report were submitted by November 14, 2017 and May 2, 2018 respectively. Extracts of the enforcement results of all work items are shown as follows:
There were twenty six river fugitive dust episode days of Kaoping River region from April 2012 to May 2018 (four times from June to July in 2012, seven times from June to October in 2013, four times from June to August in 2014, twice from May to July in 2015, four times from June to October in 2016, once during March and three times from June to July in 2017, and once during April, 2018). To understand the high potential area of river fugitive dust, this project continued to investigate, analyze and compare the potential areas of river fugitive dust by field surveys and episode day analyses and marked out the riverside villages of Ligang Township and Wandan Township as high-impact areas of river fugitive dust. This project also offered the results mentioned above for reference to the Seventh River Management Office for selecting the dust control sites. With respect to dust control improvement of exposed riverbed, the 7th River Management Office had accomplished 9.8 hectares for planting Chinese pennisetum, 11 hectares for covering with rice straw mat, 30 hectares for covering with water and 6 hectares for covering with rice straw mat at Ligang bridge reach in January, March, April and May, 2017 respectively and 14 hectares for covering with water at about 4.3 kilometers upstream from the Kaoping River Weir in May, 2017. In addition, a local community has adopted 2.2 hectares of Riverbank Park for greening. A total of 73 hectares of exposed riverbed were improved in 2017 and an estimation of TSP emission reductions was 25.8 tons per year (equivalent to 12.9 tons of PM10 emission reduction).
To analyze PM2.5 contribution of the high particulate matter concentration episodes (red alert episode days) during poor air quality season and compare the particle size distribution of episode day to non- episode day, this project carried out the particulate matter samplings around Shuangyuan Bridge and Wanda Bridge reach on February 13 and at Kanghsi Elementary School and Hsinhsing Elementary School on February 23~24, 2018. All the sampling sites are close to the industrial parks along the Kaoping River. The analysis results showed that the ratios of PM2.5 to PM10 for the sampling sites mentioned above are 0.49, 0.46, 0.62 and 0.60 on episode days, and furthermore atmospheric coarse particulate matters with aerodynamic diameters larger than 18μm and diameters ranging from 3.2 to 5.6μm have lager mass concentration increments according to the results of a comparison in particle size distribution analyses between episode days and nonepisode days.
To reduce dust emission from riverside streets and protect the quality of public life from dust pollution, this project finished 1,811.6 kilometers of street washing in fugitive dust potential areas along the riverside during the execution period and estimated a reduction of total suspended particulates (TSP) about 25 tons( or 4.7 tons of PM10, or 1.1 tons of PM2.5). In addition, this project also counseled firms or contractors to adopt road washing and cleaning works after flood season or during other periods and synthesized the road washing/cleaning length executed by government organizations concerned (e.g. water resource authorities and Environmental Protection Bureau Kaohsiung City Government) and related projects(e.g. Construction Control Project and Gravel Plant Control Project). A total of 26,405.52 kilometers of road cleaning length were achieved during the execution period up to April 20, 2018 and an estimation of TSP emission reduction was 364.40 tons (or 68.65 tons of PM10 or 16.03 tons of PM2.5).
With respect to various forms of propaganda, this project had completed five sessions of educational propaganda at Zaixing Elementary School and Yutien Elementary School in Ligang Township, Jiuru Elementary School in Jiuru Township, Kanghsi Elementary School in Hsinyuan Township and Ligang Junior High School in Ligang Township on September 21, September 27, December 20 and December 25, 2016 and March 31, 2018 respectively, and teachers and students attending were five hundreds and eighty one in total; this project hosted two propaganda sessions for villages and communities at Kuochiang Village in Ligang Township and at Hsianan Village in Wandan Township on August 11 and 16, 2017 respectively, and villagers attending were ninety six in total; this project also offered the mutual help and environmental protection patrol teams a training course concerning the river fugitive dust on March 24, 2018 and patrols attending were twenty seven in total. Furthermore, to strengthen lateral communication between government organizations concerned and response, prevention and self-protection action against dust episode, this project held a river dust protection drill and an exposed-riverbed improvement demonstration meeting on October 3, 2017. In addition, to enhance the river-dust propaganda effectiveness, this project participated in seven cross-section or cross-project propaganda activities and there were five hundreds and one participants in total. As regards the media propaganda, this project had publicized protection information for twenty five days by cable TV scroll and twenty four days by radio.
As for the lateral ties with other government entities and related projects, to understand current situation and planning of exposed riverbed improvement of Kaoping River and to discuss the modification of river fugitive dust early-warning and notification mechanism developed by Pingtung County and Kaohsiung City, this project held a liaison meeting on August 29, 2017 and invited officials of EPA, Environmental Protection Bureau Kaohsiung City Government (EPBKCG), the Seventh River Management Office and the Southern Region Water Resources Office to attend. During the meeting this project appealed to water resource authorities to ask their dredging contractors for taking water cover methods after completing dredging projects. In addition, this project also actively participated in related discussion meetings held by EPA. Through participation in these meetings we can catch on the prevention and propaganda points of other county or city governments and may take them as reference for project execution planning.
A questionnaire survey on propaganda results towards all previous river dust seed teachers showed that 86% of participants have kept carrying out propaganda, 95% are willing to keep doing related propaganda, 86% want to join the seed teacher interconnect platform and 82% would like to participate in related education training. Besides, 25% and 23% of seed teachers suggested using mass media and propaganda brochure as propaganda medium.
